Krait book 16 part 2: After the first task
by slytherinsal
Summary: The first task of the Triwizard is over, and the contestants are back in school to settle down as normal. Or as normal as things ever are. Merry Christmas to all my followers and fans, hope you enjoy.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The two Hogwarts contenders were welcomed back into school with cheers, and Sextus pulled Lilith to him and gave her a hard, quick kiss.

"You done good, so far, Halfpint," he said.

Lilith hugged him, hard.

"Missed you," she said. "Adam's dear because he's one of us, but he's not you."

"Huh, any one of us Stripy Marauders could lick almost any of the others," said Sextus, not without some justification. The Pepperingye Marauders, who were those of the Lower Sixth, freely acknowledged that the Stripy Marauders singly and en masse tended to outclassed them in imagination, as well as often enough in esoteric knowledge. And in a Triwizard, imagination counted for at least as much as knowledge and raw power.

"Zyrillis is very good," said Lilith. "Biirta hasn't half come on since she's been coached by Lucius."

"It's not, however, a snogging contest," said Sextus, rudely.

"Just as well; I might be starting to find grown up feelings about you but I don't want to let them out of the box just yet in case I can't shove them back in," said Lilith. "Just because I can brew contraceptive draughts doesn't mean that it's a good idea at my age to be in the position to need them. Every year of sex before your hormones settle down, which is about seventeen, increases the risk by about ten percent of cancer of the womb, and I know fixing it is a simple medical transfiguration, but why risk it anyway."

"You read too many muggle medical journals," said Sextus.

"They're interesting," said Lilith. "I like to see what parallels muggles have to magical solutions and to see where the two can be combined. I send clippings with notes to Healer Visick at St Bernard's; he finds it interesting."

"It's a good job you're a genius, Halfpint, or you'd never have time for lessons!"

"Bite your tongue! I'm only doing eight OWLs and one NEWT this year!" said Lilith, indignantly.

For Lilith, 'only' was a fair description of these endeavours, and Sextus hid a smile.

oOo

"Here, Zajala, you read that clue really carefully, didn't you?" said Gennar Malfoy-Tobak to his sister.

"You mean did I miss that he's hinting heavily that there will be runes on the ruddy potions and I'll need to bone up?" said Zajala.

"Oh good, I wondered if you'd read over that in the over-excitement of being expected to know more geomancy than you got taught at school," said Gennar.

"No, because I know Uncle Severus far too well not to expect him to be as sneaky and dangerous as a box full of pit-vipers," said Zajala. "Which being Uncle Severus he'd take as a compliment. You don't think he picked my weak subjects do you, on purpose because he knows me?"

"He knows most of the contenders," said Gennar. "And no, he's not playing to Lilith's strengths either. Though I shouldn't put it past him to have picked Geomancy because she's studying it to OWL this year so in theory it's a weakness of hers."

Zajala brightened.

"Yes, I know he wouldn't play to her strengths. But that is comforting that he's aiming hard things at her. Not that it'll stop her, I strongly suspect Lils could pass a Geomancy NEWT."

"She just absorbs everything anyone discusses," said Gennar. "We're all tremendously proud of her in our Marauder group, you know."

"Well she is rather a sweetie," said Zajala. "I say, have you lot covered liquid portkeys and if so, can you point me to the right shelf in the library? I need a way to give myself an advantage if the runes hold me up, though I'll need to know the ingredients."

"You're a good enough potioneer, learn them by heart by sight and smell, then the ruddy runes won't matter because you can take the caps off and tell," said Gennar.

"Good point," said Zajala. "Hey, is Sextus jealous of the new boy, Adam?"

"Yes, and no," said Gennar. "He's jealous of him going along with Lilith, but glad there's someone who can. Because he knows he's Lilith's only choice, you know. And with the Blood Group you can't help but know."

"Sometimes I wish I'd joined it and sometimes I'm glad I didn't," said Zajala. "How would you feel if I went out with Nigel Baddock?"

"It's none of my business, sis," said Gennar. "But if you feel ok about him, go for it. He's much improved since Sev did a job on that imbalance in his head. I'm not sure he's Blood Group material so it's as well you ain't in, though of course the future might change that for both of you. His sister is in. Mind, it's not so much the going out with Baddock that's the problem as the staying in with him; getting pregnant is not a wise move until you've cleared school."

Gennar had to swap his hands and ears back for this imputation on his sister, which was no hardship as switching spells were the speciality of the Stripy Marauders on the whole.

oOo

Kevin Slugworthy was happy, as Madam Bacso had spoken to him while the excitements were going on, asking if he was still interested in a post teaching Art in Durmstrang when he left school. Kevin was well aware that it was partly an excuse for her to assess him, to see if she wanted him in her school, and was glad of the German lessons Lilith had given him. He answered honestly that he was looking forward to it, and to teaching an enthusiastic class to ZP. He asked if there would be the chance to do the odd ZH – and he was pleased that he had recalled the OWL and NEWT equivalents – alongside teaching, and Madam Bacso had said that she was happy to be flexible, so long as he did not mind studying beside any seniors who might want to take his class. Kevin had shrugged.

"It's my expertise in art they'd be wanting me to teach them with, not any subjects I study alongside, and that isn't going to change, is it?" he had said. Agata had been pleased with this phlegmatic answer; this was a youth who was not going to become exercised over his age and over studying and teaching at the same time. It must be the English; Jade had taken it in her stride as well.

Agata had smiled approval and told Kevin that as he would be a colleague in a few months, he might as well use her first name as her other teachers did. Kevin felt like an adult for the first time!

oOoOo

In the Schloss Adler, Magda hugged Biirta.

"I never thought you'd be chosen over Gunnar!" she said.

"Glad she was," said Gunnar. "Bringing the cows home is one thing, but I'd never have thought of poisoning an erumpent a little bit with herbs. I'd have used the cushioning charm and been way down. And I know nothing about Geomancy."

"I know how to make a portkey," said Biirta, "And a bit about maps, because Lucius showed me, because of transporting horses. And I've been studying towards doing our Apparating licences. I half considered a liquid portkey because I am half decent with potions, but I think using runes to open a gate will be better."

"And I know nothing about runes, either," said Gunnar. "I might have been able to make a liquid portkey now you've told me that's what he meant about ingredients for travelling, but I'd never even heard of one. The Goblet picked the right person, Magda, when it chose Bii."

"Thanks, Gunnar, that's generous," said Biirta.

"Why had the Russian headmaster got hooves?" demanded Kristel.

Biirta and the rest waxed indignant in outlining the perfidy of Sergei Dolokhov, and how the schoolchildren had combined to curse him thoroughly.

"Are you allowed to DO that to a teacher?" asked Friedrich, anxiously. "I mean, it's a marvellous idea and I wish I'd been there to help, but…"

"I don't care, I wish I could have helped too!" said Kristel.

"Well we haven't got into trouble," said Biirta. "I don't think he dared complain in case our own heads did something worse to him. I expect we're all on death lists though," she added cheerfully.

"Oh Bii! How awful!" said Magda.

"Oh, I don't know," said Biirta. "Can you think of a better person on whose death list to be? I reckon if I can hack off a racist enough for him to want to kill me, I must be doing something right."

"You're insane," said Magda. Biirta shrugged.

"We already established that over my enjoyment of word games with Lucius," she said, "and by the way, there's a pile of small people waiting patiently for me to catch up on my duties as head girl, I really had better see what they want."

The pile of small people were uninterested in Biirta's role as head girl and wanted her autograph in her role as their school Triwizard champion.

"And we First Eagle Marauders can catch you up to speed on Geomancy too," said Ulvik. "Ria has place sense, which doesn't help you much but several of us been studying it as an option since we got here, partly because we wanted to make Marauding Maps and partly just because we didn't want to neglect anything."

"Well, I won't say no," said Biirta. "I need to look stuff up, but any pointers on what I ought to be looking for would be helpful. I was thinking of using apparating and a gate."

Ulvik and friends studied the maps.

"Oh, that's easy enough," said Ria, "and you don't need place sense, just an awful lot of Arithmancy. You're good at Arithmancy, aren't you, Biirta?"

"Yes, fortunately," said Biirta. "Oh, so I can use Arithmancy on the gate and just use the runes to open it?"

"Can't see a problem," said Ulvik. "I reckon any two of us could chant open a gate using this information, but being elderly and knowing more runes, you should find it child's play."

Biirta accepted that to thirteen-year-olds she was moderately elderly, and reflected that the First Eagle Marauders were actually the same age as Lilith Snape, who was two years ahead of her chronological age at school. And, at that, only a year younger than Harry Potter had been when he was joint champion.

It would be nice to dream of being joint champion with Lilith, but Biirta had a strong suspicion that if anyone managed that, it would be Zyrillis.

Biirta did have one visitor to her office who was not there as a fan.

"Biirta, I know you like Magda, but you ought to know what she's been up to," said Wilga gan Heran.

"What are you on about, now?" said Biirta, irritably.

Wilga stood on one leg.

"Well, she's been slutting around with a goblin or half goblin, and over the holidays she must have given birth," said Wilga.

"Wilga, who has told you such lies?" said Biirta. "I spent most of the holidays with Magda, and I assure you, if she had been pregnant, I would have noticed. And besides, after the rape she suffered at the hands of the orphanage director, as a lot of the older girls did who were at all good looking, er, slutting around as you so nastily put it would be the last thing she'd want to do. Spreading tales of such a wicked nature is not at all proper."

Wilga stared.

"But I've seen her with a pair of plainly part human babies and telling them that mama will take care of them!" she said.

"Oh Wilga! You are a poor prune," laughed Biirta. "Well, I'm glad you came to me and didn't spread that about – you haven't have you?" she asked fiercely.

Wilga shook her head. It was only because the others her own age would not listen to her, but she had not had a chance to tell her story, since the moment she said 'I know something about Magda' she had been firmly sat on.

Biirta nodded relieved.

"I don't see why she would call herself mama if they weren't hers," said Wilga, stubbornly.

"The twins were born to someone for whom Magda's betrothed husband feels a responsibility towards, as a dependent," said Biirta, levelly, "and he wanted to adopt them. And Magda, very nobly, agreed to know the babies from the word go. They have a nurse most of the time, but she spends time with them, because it will make it easier for them not to meet her as a stranger in a few months time."

"Magda is going to marry a goblin?" gasped Wilga. "Is it someone else in your class?"

"Wilga, it's none of your business who Magda is going to marry; she has the full approval of her guardian, Herzog Von Frettchen, which is the main thing. Her betrothed husband's father having been at school with Von Frettchen," Biirta added. If the brat could manage to add that up, it should tell her that Magda was marrying someone eligible for Durmstrang.

"So one of the pure bloods poked a goblin woman and the Duke reckons a half-breed is good enough for a poor relation?" said Wilga.

Biirta raised her hand to slap the girl and fought with herself to lower her hand as Wilga cringed.

"Wilga, you are a nasty little racist to care, but for your information, Magda's betrothed husband also went to Durmstrang. SOME aristocrats have a sense of responsibility towards those who are feudally connected to them, you know. And as this particular dependent is not capable of caring for her babies, who are NOT, by the way, the offspring of Magda's betrothed, before you start formulating that nasty little idea in your nasty and prurient little head, since there are people who do things just because they are decent people, not creeps, there's a word for it which is 'altruism', where was I?"

"Giving me a lecture on noble aristocrats," said Wilga, sulkily, in as sarcastic a voice as she dared.

"Oh yes," said Biirta, "because despite the many creeps out there, there are decent people, and Ritter is one of them. And he could not bear to see the babies just dumped in the orphanage, because he's soft hearted, as is Magda. And that's the story, it's not the full story because you have no need to know about the actual mother of the children. Now, since you have not spread this, and have only irritated me by having a nasty mind, I will only expect you to look up 'altruism' in the dictionary and write it out once. I have no idea where you can have started to formulate your quite filthy ideas, but if it's from your home life, and you ever want to tell me about anyone doing to you anything you don't like, I'm ready to listen."

Wilga scowled.

"They wouldn't dare! But people are creeps, I've seen plenty, it's my da who owns the brothel, and I've seen how people behave!"

"Oh," said Biirta. "Well if your father has let you see that rather seamy life, I'm not surprised you have a rather poor opinion of people. I can't begin to express how much people like your father, who sell misery, and who can't even keep his daughter from knowing about it, anger me. I'd like you to read the definition, but I shan't require you to write it out. I shall require you to be my fag, and your duties will be to talk to me about all the bad things you've seen, and we'll see if we can't help you find out that the people you've seen are not the norm."

"Da says everyone wants sex, or they wouldn't pay for it," said Wilga.

"Your Da only sells sex to those sad creeps who can't get sex for free," said Biirta, dryly. "Most people meet someone of the opposite sex, there is attraction, and a relationship is formed. I'm sorry that you've only seen the worst side of people; at least you should have learned that the shits, er, I mean creeps, in life are equally likely to be goblins as humans."

"And everyone despises half-breeds, it's why they have to be prostitutes," said Wilga.

"Not any more," said Biirta. "Have you learned nothing from how well the part goblins here are doing, with the chance to be anything they want?"

"Well, most don't get that opportunity," said Wilga, sulkily.

"Not yet, you poor prune; but they will. Friends of the Junior Head are setting up schools all over the place, as soon as there are educated people ready to teach," said Biirta. "Things are changing, and your father, I fear, is one who exploits those poor girls and makes them slaves because right now there are few choices."

Wilga burst into tears.

"Da takes care of them, he says so!" she stormed. "Gets them potions to stop them getting pregnant! He gets rid of any babies of girls who come to him pregnant too, and gives them jobs!"

"Well, if those abortions are not the will of the unfortunate mothers, I fear you've just pointed out that he's guilty of murder," said Biirta.

Wilga stared.

"Well who would want to keep a bastard?" she said.

"Enough people that there are bright, clever children like Mava Sternschein, who may well be a Triwizard champion of the future, and whatever she does will have a great future ahead of her," said Biirta. "Also my friend Ktell. Whose friendship I value. If their mothers hadn't been brave enough to keep them they would not be the excellent people they are. Now think about it, and we'll talk more on… your light prep night should be Wednesday. Run along!"

Wilga ran.

So many people seemed to think she was nasty, and Biirta, was often cross with her, but other people seemed to like Biirta, who was really rather admirable, but seemed to think she had odd ideas. But it was the way it was, Da said so! At least she wasn't in too much trouble for getting it wrong again, though she was not sure why. Perhaps Biirta would explain more on Wednesday. And it was an honour to fag for the Head Girl, so she could boast about that, and have the others in her class know she was worth something!

Biirta sighed, and went directly to Wulf's office; it was something the Heads needed to know informally and off the record.

Wulf listened, and nodded.

"I'll leave it in your capable hands, my dear," he said. "You are an asset as a Head Girl, and if you can help this unfortunate child to be less of a, er, little tick, that would be an amazing legacy to the school. Like David Fraser, who also turned around a child who had odd ideas, who went on himself to be joint Triwizard winner and an Auror – Lionel Dell."

"I can't see Wilga as a Vehmgericht," said Biirta, bluntly.

"Perhaps not; but maybe she may leave school determined to help others rather than using her education to further her father's prostitution empire," said Wulf, dryly.

It was something to hope for.

oOoOo

Zyrillis had to put up with the Jade Fag Marauders singing "Sig HEIL! HEIL! Right in der Fuhrer's face!" since somebody at the Gardening Fest had unwisely introduced them to Donald Duck's role in wartime propaganda after a discussion over the use of Babbity Rabbit against racists, and they thought it was funnier than songs about heroes. They had roped in the Musical Marauders, who had muttered that they had too Other Plans, the Defending Marauders and the children of the first who hoped to Maraud.

"Brats," Zyrillis said.

"You could win this," said Elfleda, giving him a quick, shy hug. He had fagged for her big sister, and Elfleda, informally, considered herself Zyrillis' fag.

His face softened. Traudl had been kind to him in her guarded, offhand way even before Jade had helped her to blossom, and caring for her little sister was something he took seriously.

Not that any of the Jade Fag Marauders needed a lot of taking care of.

"Well, I do have an advantage over previous Durmstrang champions in having learned Geomancy formally, and I can throw around terms like extrinsic translocation by precision," he said. "I was planning on using a mix of apparating and nodal shift, just because I can."

"And it should score fairly well for being swanky," said Kjell. "I BET those two places are on nodes for people who can figure it out, you need to get maps out of the library to check."

"VERY good point," said Zyrillis.

"And don't forget chanting if all else fails," said Sigismund, determined that his group of Marauders would not be left out.

"And patterns," said Zoltan. "Yrdl did some cool ones, didn't she?"

"I'll stick to what I know best," said Zyrillis. "Runes I can manipulate, and languages dead enough to have whiskers on them, but I haven't time to learn a new skillset, young Zoltan. You'll be in age for the next one, you know."

Zoltan grinned.

"I know," he said.

oOo

Alexand Amsel was glad to get back to the castle; he was aware that he did not, as Head Boy, have his finger on the pulse of Durmstrang as thoroughly as had Zlatko; and nor did the little ones repose as much confidence in him. Alexand had not one jealous bone in his body, but he did envy Zlatko his easy manner with any age group. However, because he DID find it harder, Alexand was determined to make up for being out of the castle for a week by swapping prep times with various other prefects, and seeing each class at least once over the ensuing week, even though it meant he might have to work harder to catch up his own set work.

As it happened, the lower school were enough in awe of him not to rag him; Alexand was a fair and even-handed disciplinarian, who listened always to both sides of any dispute, and generally set almost identical lines on the grounds that most arguments took two to make. If it was a case of bullying, he was clearsighted enough to see it, as first year Helmut Nachteule found out when trying to bully Dimitar Zhikov, who rather did have 'victim' written on him, despite the incipient marauders of the year keeping Dimitar out of the way of his bullying cousin Penka Gieogieva.

Alexand found Dimitar unwilling to explain, and Helmut full of how the low-born Bulgarian had started it, and had asked for witnesses.

"Nobody is going to sneak," said Helmut hastily, glowering at the class.

"I am," said Klarisza, "Because reporting a bully isn't sneaking, and Nachteule started it by pinching Dimitar and telling him to sit somewhere else where decent Germans couldn't see him."

"You will regret that, Hungarian trash!" howled Helmut. "You see how these foreigners hang together, Amsel?"

"I doubt she will regret it, you nasty little racist," said Alexand. "The Toths hang out with people like the Snapes, and they start school knowing more jinxes than Voldemort or Gerhardt left with. I'll have ten repetitions of… 'the tongue that swelled'," he named a wizarding nursery rhyme about a child who told lies and whose tongue was cursed to swell with every lie. "In your best handwriting."

"I don't have to do it," said Helmut.

"Actually, yes you do," said Alexand. "As head boy, I stand as a representative of the headmistress; so unless you would like to explain to her that you consider her to be Hungarian trash, I suggest you obey. Oh, and I'm not German. I'm Austrian."

It had nipped something in the bud because Alexand had spread to his fellow prefects that there was a foolish fellow trying to drag up the Germans versus the rest crap that Jade Von Strang und Luytens and Zhanargul Nurtazin had stepped on so thoroughly a few years back with Friedrich Steiner. The other prefects were grimly determined that this would not happen again.

It was Vighard who noticed how ill Valda Schutzstab was looking, however; and reported it to the other blooded before even considering going to Alexand.

"Oh dear," said Xanthe, "I thought she'd more or less accepted the life debt thing. I'll talk to her."

Valda was recalcitrant when Xanthe summoned her to her privileged prefect bedroom and study.

"My father says I can ignore a life debt, and that I don't need to be beholden to anyone," she said.

"Well as I recall, we established last year that your opinion of your father was not high, and that you didn't think he loved you anyway; so his view matters to you why?" said Xanthe.

Valda could not produce a valid excuse, and Xanthe firmly legilimensed her, and made a noise of disgust.

"Your father caught you writing to Adelard, because it helps to keep contact, and told you that you could do better for yourself, and twisted your arm until you promised not to do it again? What sort of idiot is he? Adelard is very well connected, and a life debt is a life debt."

"But I p-promised because I wanted the pain to stop," said Valda.

"A promise extracted under duress doesn't count," said Xanthe. "Your father isn't the one being made ill by ignoring the life debt. It's a measure of your resilience, kiddy, that you're not in hospital. Look, you write to Adelard right now, and tell him everything; and I'll see the Head to arrange a custody order for you from the school as your parents aren't acting in your best interests. The Ministry will have no qualms about granting that over some dippy parent refusing to let their brat acknowledge a life debt, it really is that big a deal. And then as your guardian, the Kaiserin, er, I mean Frau Bacso, will arrange a betrothal between you and Adelard Loënzahn so that ties you closer, so you suffer less. Will that help?"

Valda nodded.

"I wish my father was dead!" she said.

"Extreme, but I can understand that," said Xanthe. "Now, you sit and write and you'll start to feel better almost immediately."

Valda nodded.

She was starting to feel better already with the intention of writing.

Xanthe left her to it, and went to see Agata, who listened to the tale with world weary cynicism.

"Severus Snape reckons that all children would be fine if they had no parents," she said, "and at times I find myself agreeing with him. I will put in a deposition on the child's behalf as soon as I have written to her father to demand to know why he is not permitting his daughter to acknowledge a life debt, thereby jeopardising her health and education. I anticipate that his reply will be sufficient grounds to move for a removal of her from his care. Valda has to be willing; is she?"

"She wishes he was dead," said Xanthe, dryly. "Poor brat, she hasn't much of a home life, I don't think."

"Well, maybe she can spend some of the holidays with Adelard's parents if they agree," said Agata. "If not, the Marauders will just have to step up to the mark."

"It's what Marauders are for," agreed Xanthe.

The Musical Marauders considered that Marauders were also for playing japes, and that the returning Heroes of Durmstrang needed reminding that they had the support of the lower school. Transfiguring enough vaguely tubular objects into heraldic trumpets was easy enough – being tubular in the first place made the subsequent enchantment easier – and designing banners for each of those who had gone was a little challenging. The Musical Marauders put the names on as well, in case any of the Sixth were dense enough to miss their symbolic representations, or else were Harald Trollkettil which came to the same thing.

It had taken them all the time the heroes were away and most of the next week to complete, on the Snapian principle that Right was Right, and the pattern magic had to be spot on.

Consequently the sixteen trumps marched in, banners flowing behind them, the cones for feet, and raised in a flurry to play a fanfare. Being Marauders, the fanfare was 'Fanfare for the Common Man' by the muggle composer Aaron Copland; and also being Marauders it had more of the Emerson, Lake and Palmer version to it with more than a hint of swingtime. The trumpets flew through the air to range behind the appropriate hero, and the corvus-helmed suit of armour performed the percussion upon his chest with his mailed fist. As he stood behind Agata, this was also a tribute to her for taking the team.

"To what did we owe this noisy interlude?" asked Agata, who was now sufficiently inured to Marauders to turn not one hair, nor even consider it as naughtiness.

"We got behind in our greeting to the team, sorry," said Sigismund. "Only having started we thought we'd finish, on account of how it seemed a shame to waste the efforts we had so far."

"I see," said Agata. "An excellent tribute albeit tardy. Now get rid of them."

The Musical Marauders did so, and the flight of trumpets streamed out of the hall almost decorously playing another Emerson, Lake and Palmer number 'Lucky Man' which had Xanthe raise an eyebrow over the irony therein.

They might be noisy, but they did have style!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Prince Peak did not go in for noisy or spectacular effusions of display over people doing well, the team were welcomed back with a nod and a pat on the shoulder and the like. And this meant more than anything noisy in most places.

Of course the Ubiquitous Marauders had to celebrate in their own style, which was moderately musical, as comb and paper played to make ropes rise and knot into a pattern of a gate out of which poured chocolate cauldrons as gifts for the returning team.

"Now that's what I call a practical jape," said Yrdl.

"Me too, I wish WE'D thought of it," said her sister Hette of the Bee Two Marauders.

"We tied down Great Snake Mihail and threatened to tickle him until he taught us knot magic," said Zhenga, "and this is our twist on it. It's fairly versatile, sort of chanting with string."

"You stick to getting knotted and I'll stick to chanting," said BaHH equably, "but nice sweeties. Ta."

"Can you believe, they have set patterns, and have to work on doing new twists to them?" said Zhenga in disgust. "Mischa wasn't sure whether to have conniptions or kiss me when I picked up the principle and knotted a summoning spell to produce a flock of singing birds."

"Well having conniptions is the effect you lot have on most people, so nothing new there," said AHHa. "I guess that's why they are a stagnant society of respected but not innovative old men, and we hold the cutting edge of magic, because we really can do things on the fly."

"Yes, and Mischa is hoping to steal as many people as he can to teach his idiot stagnated snakes," said Zhenga. "And he's not old, by the way."

"Oho, I see," said AHHa, who might not have thought anything of grown-ups wanting to kiss a sweet little girl but picked up rapidly on Zhenga's defensiveness about someone's age. "Well, they seem decent on the whole, we can work with them."

oOo

"You know, it's a bit scary having you gone on Mischa at our age," said Fyra, "Though of course plenty of goblin girls are married by now. I don't feel ready for it."

"Nor do I, really," said Zhenga. "I'm kinda keeping it under wraps; and I can feel that Lilith is too. Those of us who know from an early age are dead lucky in some ways, because we don't have to go through all the soul searching and worrying about this boy or that, and how we feel, but I guess it's a little uncomfortable at times too. I'm going to concentrate on schoolwork and mischief, and I know fine well that Mischa doesn't want me worried with things that will interfere with me being the first female and part goblin Red Snake which he can swing as part of the Life Debt crap. We have serious political plans together which are almost as exciting as imagining him kissing me."

"That's not sex though, that's a perversion," said Bruno.

"Bite your tongue! Wilhelm and Alrik get all excited about politics, even if Serric and you don't give a toss about anything but horses!" said Zhenga.

"I can't say politics thrill me, much, either," said Fyra. "But I can see why it would be something to work towards. Are we going to join in a bunch?"

Zhenga giggled.

"That might be fun," she said. "But I don't think they'd have you. I, at least, am Ukrainian. Mind, teaching all together might be fun, no, actually I should bite my tongue there, Wilhelm and Serrik would spend all their time pranking the pupils."

Wilhelm grinned.

"And how!" he said.

oOo

The first year would-be Marauders at Prince Peak were a group of generally rather horsy little boys; or rather four of them were horsy, and the other four resigned to this, and at least acknowledging that one should treat horses well. Consequently, when the news of Dolokhov's perfidy reached them, they held an indignation meeting.

"We ought to DO something to him," said Falk.

"I thought the big ones already did?" said Radagas.

"Yes, but it's a bit tame," said Rainer. "We should do a ritual sending."

"You said what?" asked Ambrose.

"A ritual sending, when you send a spell through one of the other spaces to impact on the recipient, and I wish one of our people had brought back some hair or something as a ritual link."

"Lost most of us," said Jurgo.

"I'm with him," said Radagas. "Actually, I might be able to use feyspace to get some… I learned how to get into it from some of the fey in the tower…"

This necessitated a few explanations, and Radagas was regarded thoughtfully.

"That's all very well, and I might manage it too if I practise, but where IS Dolokhov right now?" said Rainer.

"Back at… oh. Yes, I see, he's gone back to darkest Russia," said Radagas.

"But he'll be at Beauxbatons for the Yule Ball," said Zenz. "Which gives us time to do much library work and decide what we want to do."

This was voted a good idea; and had the staff not been used to small Marauders, and knew who they were, the boys of the first year might have been considered to be frightful little prigs for the amount of library work they put in between Quidditch, riding and other little incidentals like lessons.

oOo

"I have to admit, Hallow is good," said Leesytsa to Domna.

"Durmstrang does provide a wider range of education than the Pureblood School," said Domna. "She's weaker on ritual, as we are taught that as part of enchanting, in a way many schools do not; but we never had Geomancy as a subject, and she seems very sound on Runic knowledge and has picked up some ritual. HOW Durmstrang must be laughing, that the Russian champion is one of their rejects; it is very lowering, even if I am finding much to learn in the tolerance towards other races."

"She was rejected for her beliefs, not her skills," said Leesytsa. "It may have been that she would have been chosen as champion of Durmstrang."

"Never happen," said Domna. "We've met Zyrillis on the piste, at least, Anatoli did, and he is good. He is the true Durmstrang champion."

"He is almost as good as I am," said Zlatko, breaking in on their conversation.

"You are self opinionated," said Leesytsa.

"With good reason," said Zlatko. "I could, perhaps, have wished in some ways that either of my girlfriends had been chosen, but I believe the best contender was. Hallow was never any great shakes, a solid 'E' average student with 'O' moments. Good potioneer, though, she should make short work of the brewing."

"I think this competition is a foolish waste of time," said Amyetis Al-Sharu.

"Sure it is, Princess Orinjade," said Zlatko, borrowing Darryl's nickname for her, "save in one particular. It keeps pointing out that the supremacists tend to be shallow in their skill sets because they will harp on about the Dark Arts, with no supporting skills. And I've forgotten more Dark Arts than most of those who assiduously study them ever learn," he added.

"You are also skilled in ritual," said Amyetis.

"But with a different approach to either the Russians or your people," said Zlatko. "That's why it's so exciting studying with Sev, here; the chance to learn more from other people as well as from him. Those of us who long to fly high, anyway."

"Some of us just want to back up what we didn't learn at school," said Guy Speedwell.

"And I didn't get schooling in magic," said Ignaz Muller.

"Nor I," said Elise, "though it's jolly interesting listening to you high flyers talk; when I can follow it."

"Oh you never stop learning," said Zlatka. "My brother just likes to show off."

"There's plenty to learn here to help you get in the habit of learning when we finish," said Mafalda.

"I am impressed by how much interests me when I think of it in terms of music," said Amos Leroy. "But I, too, think it a silly contest. It wastes study time and risks the lives of the brightest and best. I am glad that Silvina is not the champion; she is far too valuable to risk for such foolishness. When I have a music school, we shall not enter it."

This was something of a dampener on any further discussion, and with a shrug, Mungo, who had stayed well out of it, sidetracked Zlatko with a question on the Arithmancy of shapeshifting. It sidetracked him from potentially stirring trouble, which Zlatko realised in the middle of a long explanation, whereupon he gave Mungo a florid bow of appreciation.

David Fraser's adoptive son was generally quiet enough that you forgot who had had the training of him.

And Amos Leroy seemed to be turning out to be relatively normal; at least for someone who was music obsessed! His prejudices concerning Silvina not being chosen had nothing to do with what race Yrdl might be, but merely an indifference to anyone of any race who was not musical. Which was tested by him being perfectly civil to Vya, who was musical, and uncivil to Antti, who could not hold a tune in a sack, even though his chanting was coming along quite well.

oOo

Law woke out of sleep screaming.

It took the combined efforts of the Questing Marauders, including Grace, Vivienne and Otylia, who invaded the boys' dormitory, to get him even approximately coherent. However, Severus apparated in, alerted by the blood-scream.

"Calmly, Law, let us examine it together," said Severus, gently. Using legilimensy, and drawing the boy's thoughts with him through the memory, he unravelled the dream, where the loved ones of any of the goblin contestants were to be spirited away from their hidden place and threat made to have them killed horribly if those contestants did not pull out.

Severus' black eyes narrowed, dangerously. They would probably be killed horribly anyway.

For Yrdl, this would be her boyfriend, Crow; for Zajala, her baby brother Cosmo, whose birth marked the total joining of the children of Tanjela and Tobak with the children of Lucius Malfoy; and for Riker, it was his favourite sister, Ivy. They would not want to permit goblins, halfbreeds or blood traitors to live. To shield the room from ritual gate meant that the contestants could not get in either.

"It's all right, I have a solution," said Severus, as one occurred to him. It was totally easy. He would collect ritual samples of the contestants at the Yule Ball, and slightly rearrange matters in the lodge where the hostages were kept. They should all be in a room with heavy warding, approached only through fire, and the place of arrival should have a short corridor to the wall of fire, which would engulf anyone who was not designated as a permitted person and drop them in an oubliette. The power of twenty-three factorial would be enough to make it inimical for anyone else. Severus smiled grimly.

"He's plotting," said CuHH.

"I am planning on sending any would-be kidnappers to atramentous gloom," said Severus. "You may use your dictionaries in here before settling down again, and I will have Horlicks sent up to you. If you girls plan on spending half the night keeping the boys awake, for goodness sake get in the other end of someone's bed. It's getting chilly at night."

Eight children duly looked up 'atramentous' and discovered it meant inky black; and promptly filed it away as potentially useful four syllable word for chanting.

"He could have said 'Stygian'," said Grace, critically.

"Yes, but we'd have known what that meant, so he wouldn't have made us think any," said CuHH, who actually understood Severus more than most.

"I'd rather drop them in a foetid, feculent, cacaceous concatenation of the kind that comes out of a Hubble cauldron," said Law, with feeling. Grace might be no kind of potioneer, but she was quite capable of transfigurational magic outside of her age group, so that Law had to call pax to be rescued from his hands becoming sausage dogs and yapping at him.

"I expect Severus has plans for the baddies," said Rence, when the noise had died down.

"Even if only to feed to Tibbles," said Boleslav.

"I think it would upset her tummy," said his sister, earnestly. The school Griffon was very popular with the children.

The children drank their Horlicks and went back to sleep in something of a selection of bundles where they had been cuddled together reading dictionaries. The other two boys in the dormitory had accepted Horlicks, but had been less interested in staying awake for dictionary work; as Motti said, one might be nosy, but there were limits, and besides the others would be bound to use the wretched word again in context.

oOoOo

Pharamond did not get a rapturous welcome home as he had not been away, though the Champagne Marauders wanted to know what it was like to be champion. Pharamond ran a Marauders party with a small midnight feast to celebrate being through the first task, and the younger ones were ready to question him on it!

"It's bloody hard work," said Pharamond. "I've got more of a chance than if I hadn't been given extra lessons in a heap of things by Darryl, mostly Arithmancy, but to be honest, I don't think even so that I have the depth of the other two major schools. We don't work hard enough here."

"So we should be putting in time to make up for that?" asked Armand Leblanc.

"Yes, you should; and using library work to find spells out of your age range for playing japes with. It's what Marauders do," said Pharamond. "Lilith Snape said she didn't realise libraries had any other purpose than for pulling japes until she had been at school a couple of years, which I suspect may be an exaggeration, but then, when you consider her papa was one of the original Marauders with Harry Potter's papa, and her maman was a Marauder with Harry Potter it makes sense."

"No wonder so young a child feels able to compete!" said Amelie Lafée, who was a year older than Lilith and had felt this rather. "It is through the way the fée travel of course that she crossed the age line, as the prohibition did not extend there."

"Well done," said Pharamond. "And if you could not do it before, you and Melusine, and when he is blooded, Auberon too, will be able to use it. Be careful; the Fée are dangerous."

"Can we learn it?" asked Chantelle, Amelie's best friend.

"Possibly; some non-fey have managed," said Pharamond. "I'd like to do so myself; I believe it takes a lot of self discipline and a goodly amount of Arithmancy until you're used to it, to enter. Only those with the most determination and will-power manage."

"We really have to, to back up our fée members," sad Armand. "Will we blood the three younger ones soon?"

"I thought Halloween would be a good time," said Pharamond. "Very well, time to scoot. Jean-Luc, Abelard, Philomène and I will keep cave for you to get back to your dormitories."

This was more care for the wellbeing of younger Marauders than any other group would consider necessary, but the French Marauders were still learning their way around the idea of flagrant rule breaches for good causes, and had not the habits of sneaking around that were second nature to children raised on English school stories, or in the case of Durmstrang, keeping watch for bullies.

With the little ones delivered safely, Abelard and Jean-Luc tactfully left Pharamond to say good night to Philomène.

"I've hardly had a chance to talk to you," he said.

"Pharamond, Professor Snape told me I was to hold myself in preparation to be kidnapped a little bit by him," said Philomène. "Does… does that mean that you care for me a little bit more than as a fellow Marauder?"

Pharamond put his hands on her slender shoulders to gaze into her eyes.

"Professor Snape looked at me hard, and told me not to lose what was under my nose," he said. "I think he used legilimensy to find who was the best beloved of each contestant, and he picked you. I've been wondering about how I felt for a while, and that rather confirms that he knows me better than I know myself. I would like to live the rest of my life with you."

"Oh Pharamond, I will gladly be your mistress when I leave school!" said Philomène.

"No you bloody well will not, I'm going to marry you!" said Pharamond, jerking her into his arms and kissing her thoroughly.

It was probably fortunate that a draught, indicating an opening door, interrupted them, and Pharamond dragged his lips from hers.

"But I'm part goblin and you come from an old, pure blood family," said Philomène.

"Nuts to that," said Pharamond. "I love you, Philomène, and I don't care. You… _sacre bleu_, there IS someone coming, go to bed, I'll stall."

Philomène slipped away; if anyone could come up with convincing excuses for being out of bed at nearly one of the morning, it was Pharamond.

Pharamond walked boldly towards the sound of stealthy footsteps and demanded,

"Who is that?"

"Pharamond? What are you doing out of bed, my boy?" the voice, and the figure which followed it, belonged to Homère Tisserand.

"Oh, M. Tisserand! I heard a noise," said Pharamond, who was properly clad for a midnight feast in pyjamas and a gaudy silk dressing gown.

"It's that dratted back door, the hinges squeak," said Tisserand. "I was visiting my _cher ami_…."

"Oh, I will see if I can ask the janitor to oil it," said Pharamond. "He likes me."

"And he doesn't like me," said Tisserand. "Thank you, my boy, I appreciate it no end. Olympe – Madam Maxime – doesn't like illicit trips out."

"Your secret is safe, sir," said Pharamond. "Any time you want me to cover for you, I shall, I'm so glad you are happy! Sometimes the rules have to be bent a little, hmm?"

"Yes, quite so," said Tisserand, looking relieved.

Pharamond genuinely liked the History master, but having him agree that sometimes rules had to be bent, and being a little in Pharamond's debt did no harm. Just in case they ever needed an adult ally.

oOoOo

"If you think I'm going to waste my time coming to support a lousy one-third goblin in the rest of the competition when I could be doing better to study for my NEWTs you can think again," said Jocelyne to Riker. "Anyway, it's dangerous."

"Good, I don't really want you," said Riker. "I asked Professor Fraser if Storm and Zephyra would be allowed to support me, if they weren't chosen by his Champion, and he said that Zajala would be only too happy for them to support old friends and she could choose other supporters for her permitted six, even though they are quite close friends of hers and spend their holidays at Malfoy Manor."

Riker had no side himself, but he was a realist, and he knew that this would send Jocelyne into a towering rage of jealousy, that had she chosen to be sponsored as well, she too might have been spending her holidays at Malfoy Manor. Somehow Riker doubted that she would have been; Storm and Zephyra were the friends of one of Lucius Malfoy's goblin daughters because they were nice girls and the Malfoys were not, or did not seem to be, stuck up. Well, their Professors Malfoy had never been so. And he could not see Jocelyne having become an intimate of a nice seeming girl like Zajala.

Jocelyne did indeed throw one and retired, loudly, in dudgeon high enough to need hovering charms.

"I wish I could come, bro," said Ivy.

"You'd have been a better choice than me," said Riker, ruefully. "And I say, I spoke to Professor Snape and he's more than happy to have you for the sixth, and any of the younger ones too, in appropriate forms!"

"What's he like? He looks so scary!" said Ivy, "But I keep wondering if it's just the way the scars pull his face to make him scowl that side; and he seems to keep that side towards the scrying globes."

"It is, he's immensely kind, you can see by the way his pupils go to him with everything," said Riker. "And Lilith is his oldest actual daughter, he has several adopted children, one of them was along as a candidate. That's Silvina. She's awfully musical, but claims that's her only talent but she had to come because someone had to be around to sit on Lilith a little bit if she got cheeky, which shows that he doesn't treat his adopted children as less. He struck me as a man to trust."

Ivy grinned.

"Well, in that case, I'll take Amarantha up on the offer," she said. "Watch out for dirty tricks from Jocelyne; she may not like the danger but she's still sore you were chosen, not her. I saw her face on the Wireless Vision Globe and it was like Voldemort on an anger potion."

"That makes her an Infurious, doesn't it?" laughed Riker.

"Funny, Rike, but do take her seriously, won't you?" said Ivy, anxiously. "Ask Professor Longbottom if you can store any kit you take with you safely in his office, just in case she finds a way to sabotage anything you prepare."

"Well, she can't sabotage the horse I'm going to use as I already made friends with the French mare, and I'll want my wand for the 'point me' spell to line up the nodes for nodal shift, and that's about it," said Riker. "She ain't likely to be in our house in the bedroom sabotaging my clothes, and she'd have to guess which was mine out of those of us who share anyways."

Ivy nodded.

"Good, I'm glad she can't harm you," she said. "Alberic and Percy would give her what for, and Denis may only be ten, but I bet he's picked up a spell or two from you big boys."

"Oh yes," said Riker. "I wonder if Amarantha would be able to see all you girls into school next year; those kids in Prince Peak have conversations that blow my mind. I mean, nothing against Professor Longbottom and the other staff, but…"

"But their job, I guess, is pushing all the Tommy gan Proks in the road through a DOE so they have a chance of not being at the bottom of the heap," said Ivy, cynically.

"Professor Longbottom said pretty much that to those of us who stayed for NEWTS," said Riker. "I think he'd be glad to see clever kids like my sisters – and Denis next year – go to a school that would bring out your talents, and I know Alberic and Percy would help with fees, and so will I if I can get a good job. Which I can, because with a Geomancy NEWT you can almost write your own ticket. Heh, maybe I should do a crash course in French and ask Madam Maxime if she wants a Geomancy professor."

"If you do well in the next task, it's a helluva good interview technique," said Ivy. "Why not? She can only say no! I bet Professor Malfoy parleyvous like mad."

Being a professor had not been an ambition for Riker, but he was not madly keen to work in a ministry whose efficiency he considered suspect, even under the Council; and it was certainly a thought to consider!

oOoOos

"I don't see why the Goblet chose you, not me," said Ulysses Hobday, huffily, as soon as the Hellibore's boys were safely back in their Swiss stronghold. "I can't help thinking it's a fix, so that the big schools don't have any real competition."

"If you think you're better than I am, Hobday, you're fooling nobody but your bloody self," said Sardo, shortly. "YOU were trying to tell me just to confund the erumpent."

"And what's wrong with that?" demanded Hobday.

"Their level of magic resistance for one thing," said Sardo, "And the fact that there's not enough brain in there to confund. You've actually studied Care of Beasts to NEWT, surely you recall that? If not, you'll look a fool if you get erumpents for the exam.

"One would hope that the proper method for dealing with them in the exam is not to be used in the higher mysteries of the Triwizard," said Hobday, loftily.

"Don't be pretentious," snapped Caspar Jefferson. "I heard you saying that you had no idea what the textbook way of dealing with them was."

"Well, I'm sure I could have come up with something better, and been higher up the leader board," said Hobday.

"In your dreams," said Caspar. "Sardo is a better all-rounder than you are, and what's more you'd be up shit creek without a paddle in the next one because your potions smell like old socks and undead horned toads, and it is rather the central part of the task."

"Mostly it's Geomancy, and it's unfair because we don't study it," whined Cassius Blaise. "It's set up to keep us out."

"Actually I heard Snape say to the Old Man that he was hoping we'd find a Geomancy teacher soon," said Caspar. "He gave him fair warning, way back last Yule. And we HAVE had some Geomancy to help us with apparating, if you bothered to attend the class Professor Grant was teaching."

Blaise scowled. The Geomancy class had been supplemental for those hoping to take their apparating licence, or who had failed it the previous year, and being voluntary, not all the boys had bothered to turn up.

"And if it were the major schools, the boy from the London school would also be at a disadvantage, and I heard him mention he is taking Geomancy to NEWT," said Sardo. "We have fewer classes than some schools, because we learn etiquette and dancing instead, more's the pity. And we'll always be labelled as a school for pretty-mannered layabouts until we do more schoolwork and less mincing about."

Sardo was unaware that the Prince Peak nickname for Hellibore's was much more unkind than that.

"And they were better than us at dancing, too," moaned Hobday. "They do it on purpose to show us up!"

"I think it's because they dance for fun and not as a lesson," said Sardo, who came very close to the truth. "And they seem to approach even lessons as fun. How do you compete with that?"

"It's an act," said Hobday, scoffing.

"If it's an act to go into a huddle with the Durmstrang crew to discuss the Arithmantic possibility of parallel universes then they're amazing actors as well as way out there with Arithmancy," said Sardo, dryly. Lilith Snape had postulated that in another universe, Voldemort had won and had taken over ODESSA, and that in another he had been de-Voldied, in her words, before he really got going. It was one of those unprovable postulates that delighted the more Arithmantically inclined of the Marauders.

"And another thing, that Snape kid shouldn't be there at all," said Hobday. "She's only fifteen!"

"Thirteen," said Sardo. "She went up to Hogwarts two years ahead of her chronological age because they wouldn't have her any earlier. Her name went in the Goblet, and it can't now be changed, so tough. I have no problem in her doing better than me. I guess she's forgotten more than most of our professors even know."

"Unwholesome brat," said Hobday.

"Poor child," said Caspar, "Did Snape cram her, do you think?"

Sardo shrugged.

"As far as my siblings were able to find out she's just amazingly bright, and loves learning, and was eager to go to school early," he said. "I don't think there was any cramming at all. However, how well she does is up to her, and how well I do is up to me, and I need to revise Geomancy thoroughly. Which I shall, because I can understand the books and don't throw them into a corner as being a load of nonsense."

This was a dig at Hobday, who had not got on well with Geomancy. Hobday was capable enough of banishing, or extrinsic relocation, but only from or to a locaction he occupied. And the idea of using other, Arithmantically proven, universes by which to send it would not have entered his ken, proving him to be somewhat less efficient in his extrinsic relocation than the Valentine Marauders in the second year at Schloss Adler.

"I know you're the right choice, old man," said Caspar, quietly. "Take no notice of Hobday."

"I never do," said Sardo.

oOoOo

"It should never have been Hallow, Headmaster," complained Fedya Chareekrovy.

"She's just an English bitch," said Arkadi Volkhov, giving Aglaia a violent push.

Aglaia might have despised the Marauders, but she had learned a thing or two, and Arkadi was going to have trouble pushing her again as his hands became limp rhubarb.

"What have you done to my hands, English bitch? Put it right!" yowled Arkadi.

Aglaia smiled. It was not a nice smile.

"If I'm just an English bitch and not worthy to be champion of the school, and you are so much better than I, then put it right yourself," said Aglaia.

"Durmstrang prides itself on its transfiguration," said Dolokhov, sourly. His own transformation was still apparent. "My cousin was headmaster there for many years; it does provide a wide education."

Aglaia tried not to reflect that the widest education, including the Geomancy she loved, had come after the overthrow of ODESSA; and that studying had become easier when not avoiding bullies. Especially when the English girl was fair game to them. Coming to this school was a step back to the old Durmstrang, and she was glad that she was competent enough a witch to hold her own, even though she had never made it onto the Durmstrang duelling team. She wished now that she had studied Chanting when it was offered, as it seemed a short cut to the ritual the Russians placed so much store in. It was not, of course, a short cut, since there was much to learn in the discipline before one might duplicate a ritual on the fly, but Aglaia was painfully developing her own variant using her knowledge of Runes and Arithmancy to do similar things to the knot magic some of her fellows had learned from the time they had entered the sixth.

"Durmstrang provides a good education; it is an old and long-established school," she said. "The Cheestykrovy Shkola has not been running long."

"Or at least, not under efficient handling," said Dolokhov. "Gospoda Hallow will teach Geomancy when she had completed her education so we will not be deficient in it another time. None of you know as much as her about that, and she is also extremely skilled at Potions. In retrospect the choice was correct, though it was a shock. Naturally the other schools will try to cheat by choosing those skills in which we do not have teachers. They have been outsmarted by our possession of one who is skilled. Once she has taught for a few years and is married to a good Russian, everyone will forget she was born English."

"I am quite happy to be English, thank you," said Aglaia. "After all, your cousin kissed the hem of the robe of Voldemort, sir, and Voldemort was also English. Because your cousin considered him a better proposition to follow than the Grindelwald family."

Dolokhov scowled at her.

"It was before the rise of Aleksandr Tsareyevitch," he snapped. "We have been let down by Prince Rustam, the Grand Warlock of Kiev, but Prince Aleksandr is the greatest living necromancer on earth, and he will uncover the secret of the power Snape uses, and then we shall see!"

Aglaia fought to avoid association with the greatest living necromancer on earth and the Convolvumort sketches every English child grew up hearing. The combination was too incongruous.

"I suppose if he is a necromancer he can afford to permit horses to die unnecessarily of easily cured diseases usually only confined to muggle beasts," said Aglaia coldly, "as he can re-animate them. But I must say, headmaster, as you cannot, I find it very lowering that the French took our horses away, and that you are so careless as to permit them to be in that state."

Dolokhov struck her.

Aglaia was used to being beaten on from the Odessa years in Durmstrang. She rode the blow as best she could and pulled herself upright.

"Being pure-blooded does not seem to preclude foolishness," she said, coldly. "I am proud of my pure blood; but your cousin picked a loser, Headmaster. I hope you have not done the same. And that you will learn to be thorough in all things, of which care of your beasts is but one. I suspect you might find that half the secret of the power of Snape is in his careful preparation and thoroughness. Now good evening to you; I have preparations to begin for the second task."

Aglaia swept out.

She was concerned about the second task; not about performing it well, over which she had no concerns, but about the Russians discovering about her sister. Snape had looked into her eyes, had nodded, and said,

"Your feelings do you credit," leaving her in no doubt that he approved of her love for her squib sister. Iphianira could not, after all, help it; but it would be something Aglaia' class mates might make difficulty over. Iphianira was at school in England, in the Rowan House school for squibs because she had begged to go to school, and although she had to associate with muggles and goblins, it was hard to deny her anything to make up for her being a squib. Poor child, to feel such need for companionship that she was prepared to put up with such school fellows! But Iphie was a dear little girl, and would not be made vulgar, nor dragged down by them. Perhaps after a couple of years she would consent to a nice governess and the influence of such loathsome creatures could be forgotten.

She would surely be terrified to be subjected to this wretched task, but Aglaia had to prove that pure blood was better than the blood taints and animals the other schools fielded.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Petrus Hess never knew that he had it in him to be a rebel, nor to be outspoken, neither of which characteristics were those commonly associated with Hufflepuff house. However, Petrus was much put out.

Quidditch was the one thing which really moved him, and this year all Quidditch was on hold because of the stupid Triwizard. Not that it was so stupid, Petrus was glad to admire his sister for being the champion of her school, but it was stupid when you wanted to play quidditch.

Petrus took a consensus from the lower school – he was a little nervous of approaching the upper school – and found an ally in Harronione Coote, who had been promised the position of Seeker to the first team in just her second year, since the Gryffindor team had entirely forgotten that this year was to be the Triwizard. Being a Hufflepuff, Petrus nodded sagely that such things were easy to forget in the heat of quidditch, rather than making the sort of snide comments about boneheaded Gryffs a Slytherin or Ravenclaw might have made.

With Harri's encouragement, and a selection of hangers on, the junior quidditch players found the courage to canvass the older ones, and as a result a round robin turned up on David's desk – and it really did just turn up, since most of the Slytherin second team were Marauders – demanding the right to play interhouse Quidditch if the team captains did all the organising and played substitutes if any of their team were involved in the Triwizard.

This meant that Slytherin lost Lilith and Zajala, but they fielded a few decent players, and the chance to play outweighed losing a brilliantly erratic broomsurfing keeper and a good chaser who would be leaving school that year anyway. Richard and Drogo had stared open mouthed as Petrus waxed enthusiastic and demanded that they should be heard; this was not the rather boring, lackadaisical Petrus they knew, and though both boys secretly wished that he had thought of it first, they threw themselves behind Petrus. Petrus in fact found himself carried off shoulder high with 'for he's a jolly good fellow' sung, and played, with varying degrees of accuracy, on the time-honoured comb and paper, fart organs, Honking Daffodil pipes and any other odd instrument the other quidditch players could muster.

David was thrilled to see Petrus at the head of a revolt. And if the school really wanted it, and the team captains were truly ready to run it, then it was their game, usurped for the glory of just one, or in this case, two school pupils.

He decided to put it to the school and thumped for silence after supper.

"I've received a round robin, asking if the school itself may organise interhouse quidditch matches," he said. "The proviso being, of course, that nobody involved in the Triwizard may play, though I see no reason it should preclude supporters. So long as schoolwork does not slip, of course! I am willing to be guided by the will of the school in this; anyone in favour shout 'Aye'."

There was a loud and overwhelming response.

"Any 'nays'?" asked David.

"Only from the horses," came a voice from the lower end of Slytherin's table.

"My brother, the comedian," said Penelope. "I'm not quidditch mad, sir, but those of us who are horsy get to ride anyway, and it keeps up the skills for quiddpolo which is too difficult to organise in a Triwizard year."

There had been perhaps a handful of 'nays' which had come from those terminally opposed to games of any kind, which was just the way things were, and from those who preferred beach cricket in New Zealand through the gate in the junior cloakroom. There was no reason they should not play cricket when others were practising quidditch however, so David ignored them and murmured that cricket would be equally under the aegis of those keen enough to organise it, which brightened a few faces.

Damian Malfoy stood.

"As head of Gryffindor quidditch, I'm happy to go into a huddle with my counterparts and organise some games," he said. "Slytherin lose most, including their captain."

Zajala rose.

"If Ludmila will take on the job, she and Damian can always be prised out of each other if discussions look like becoming a necking party, and at least they ought to liaise well enough together," she said. "I trust Ludmila to pick wisely and well to replace Lils and me."

Dunbar Finch rose.

"We lost our captain at the end of the year when Miriam left, and Norman Whytely so pro tem I'm assuming the captaincy on grounds of seniority; we can vote on it later. And I'm happy to go along with the scheme."

"Why vote? You're seeker and a good type, if it ain't broke, don't fix it," said Kaur Freeman.

"Ferdinand Belby is our choice in Ravenclaw," said Sextus, firmly. "A good team player, and able to pick well to replace the three we lost."

"And I'm not afraid to follow in Sampta's shoes and exclude anyone who brings the beautiful game into disrepute," said Ferdinand, "Though I will be open minded about those who made a few mistakes and learned from them."

This, when all was said and done, was Randall Corner, who was ready to try hard not to be a pain in order not to lose the chance to play for his house in his final year.

"Well, that appears to be settled," said David. "Please do not neglect to send me a fixtures list and invitations to all the games when you have organised them: I am sure Madam Hooch will put herself at your disposal to help out and referee, and before anyone asks, I must decline to referee for anyone as I have two domestic and one international games to referee this year, which need to be fitted into my already overstretched schedules. I'll post the dates on the notice board in case it influences your decisions of when to play."

It was as well to remind the school from time to time that he was a qualified international referee as well. David could have preferred not to have been doing his second job this year, but that was life. He always negotiated to referee in the holidays when he could, but sometimes this wasn't possible. David felt more than equal, however, to keeping his finger on the pulse in Hogwarts even when out of the castle a lot; and if there were problems, there were always Marauders, a comforting fact to fall back on.

The upshot was, however, a close friendship between Petrus and Harri, his first real interhouse friendship, since Drogo, Varjak, Penelope and Richard and their set did not really count. He and his friend Alexander Bones made a foursome with Harri and her best friend, Ariadne Ollerton.

Petrus wrote to Biirta and received a warm reply about how pleased she was that he felt so settled that he was able to take initiative, and that he should be aware that things like that were what Headmasters looked for to single out future prefects.

Petrus had never thought about being a prefect; such older ones were lordly beings, and indeed he was fairly in awe of all the Sixth and Special Sixth regardless of whether they were prefects or not. However it would be sweet to be wearing a prefect badge one day, and would show Biirta that he could do it!

oOo

Others of Petrus' age group were anticipating being brought into the Blood Group, those who were not already of it. The Hunting Marauders were still, on the whole, researching the animal forms they wanted as animagi, and were trying not to be impatient about getting hints from bloodsong; but Richard had cunningly suggested to David that as Zajala was not bloodgroup, having more people who were, including her much loved little brother, Varjak, youngest of her full siblings, might not be a bad idea, especially if he was to be the best beloved chosen for the second task.

"The second task is under the aegis of your father," David reminded him.

"Yes, sir, but those Russians are sneaky, and though I don't suppose they have a single ritual that he hasn't some idea about, they just might know something he doesn't" said Richard. "He may be Merlin's cotton socks, but even Merlin had off days, and he's always warning us that there's always more to learn. Constant vigilance!" he added.

David was fairly sure this was an attempt to force yet another early blooding, but he sighed. Richard's carefully promulgated casuistries actually had enough possible truth in them to make it worth considering.

"All right, Richard, don't do Alastor Moody impressions, the earnest discussion of risk, and looking like your father as you do so, are quite enough to win me over. Halloween," he said. "How many of you imps are there?"

"A nice arithmantic nine, sir, and three of us already blooded which is almost a symmetry on its own," said Richard.

"Good; if you haven't already told them what's what, you can do so while we wait for Halloween then," said David.

This was enough encouragement for the Hunting Marauders that they felt moved to show that they were true Marauders with the execution of a jape.

Richard, as Lilith's little brother, declared that they needed to follow up the bog of very long lasting stench – which the Stripy Marauders had replenished the previous year with more permanent gas-engulfing spells – with something else associated with 'Labyrinth'. Being a fairly competent set of Arithmancers, especially Richard and Lucy, who could follow most of Lilith's less fanciful arithmantic discourses and some of what she said when she got lyrical, and having an artist in Drogo who could apply a form of Protean charm through drawing, backed up by Rose, who had actually started school knowing how to cast a Protean Charm, they got creative.

The school arose to find that all the main staircases had been thoroughly confunded and charmed to become something akin to an M.C. Escher picture, and the Hunting Marauders were playing with them, with Drogo looking very like a miniature Jareth, swinging over the end of a stairway to nowhere to continue on its other side, while 'how you turn my world, you precious thing' played from an enormous musical box which had once been the table in the entrance hall.

"My goodness!" said David, mildly, emerging from his suite when alerted by the hubbub. "Dear me, how very ingenious; Protean charm to the original picture, confundment, charms and transfigurations, switching spells on the direction of gravity? I didn't know that was possible! Ah, a combination of the reverse gravity spell with a switching zone, extrinsic directional reversal by extreme precision, very prettily done."

"I didn't know it had a name," said Lucy.

"It does now, my dear," said David. "Dear me, well, let me see, a gate for each house to go to breakfast, and then I really must explore this before asking you children to remove all your clever work. I always fancied playing with the muggle piece of kit David Bowie had to swing over the end, now I can do it without the artificial aid," he added happily. "If you children have time to build a small version for the garden gnomes, I'm sure they'd love it!"

David was well known for his entertainment of the castle gnomes by muggle-style funfair rides, as a means to divert them from destructive behaviour in Hagrid's garden. He waved a negligent hand to open gates for those students who did not want to play with the Escheresque staircases – by no means all of them – and proceeded to run up, and subsequently down on the back, one of the staircases, chortling almost as much as Albus Dumbledore might have done in like situation. His casual performance of such complex magic as opening gates awed his less frivolous students enough to make them overlook such almost childish behaviour as playing with most irregularly behaving staircases.

It would be a most excellent idea to use for a future Triwizard task.

oOo

"We can't let the Hunting Marauders get away with that without doing something ourselves and we don't even have a Marauder name," said Harry to his set.

"Wasn't the Head just too cool about it!" said Arzad. "I never thought they'd just get away with it!"

"It's about not really causing any harm, isn't it?" said Tagett.

"You got it," said Harry. "Iris, you Snapes are supposed to be good at ideas, tell us what we're going to do."

"Well, I like THAT!" said Iris. "You're the cousin of the Boy Who Lived, why not be the Boy Who Thunked?"

"Thunked?" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"Sounds better than thought," said Iris.

"Point conceded," said Harry.

"Can we do something to do with Labyrinth too?" said Ace.

"What is this Labyrinth?" asked Jasper.

"It's a film, I think," said Linnie.

The putative Marauders went off to find someone senior in the MSHG to set up Labyrinth to watch.

"It's a bit racist, with the comic goblins more like the fey," said Linnie, afterwards.

"But it's a muggle film and they can't, most of them, see goblins as goblins," Harry explained. "So they don't know it's racist and actually some of them really are like some of the fey. Believe me, we've had wild hunting – well, wild partying – across Lucius' grounds, outside of the wards. Some of them are loonies."

"I suppose we can't build the cleaning machine," said Ace, wistfully.

There was a long, wishful, silence.

"It might hurt someone, even if we could make it go," said Harry, regretfully.

"We could put thirteens on all the clocks and make each hour shorter," said Tagett. "We'll get into trouble for disrupting lessons, I guess, but it so would be worth it; how many people actually look closely enough at clocks to realise? It'd only last a morning, but…"

"I think he's on to something," said Ivo.

"We could make it so the elves isn't affected," said Solly, "because that's interfering with the servants and that's an unwritten rule that you don't. Because none of the Malfoy children play japes at home that interfere with the servants."

"We could make it go berserk at midday when it strikes thirteen, and then plays some of the Labyrinth music and then changes back to being perfectly normal," said Iris. "A self-righting jape has to get cool points for no permanent harm to the fixtures, and I say, could we get it to howl like Ludo and hurl illusory rocks at everyone in the great hall?"

"Wow," said Harry. "Great thinking, everyone! And I say, can we declare ourselves the Time Marauders or something? If we were thirteen strong we could have been Prime, for the thirteen o'clock as well, but the others weren't right."

"Wouldn't we have to have a Tardis to be Time Marauders?" giggled Ace.

"We do; it's called having wizarding space to get us all into this boxroom," said Iris. "Oh dear, I can't be explaining all these muggle cultural references right now. Of course it would be even cooler it we could be Time Lords enough to put the time right and back to when we disrupted it, so we have the morning over again, but I think that's beyond us."

"I think that's beyond Lucy Prince and indeed anyone short of Lilith," said Harry. "Well, library work, I guess."

oOo

David was reflecting that the morning break seemed to have come a little early when the bell rang; and Minerva McGonagall swept into his office.

"David, some wee sumpfs have been tampering with the clocks," she said.

David glanced at his own clock, which had not been tampered with, and then headed down for the Great Hall.

"Dear me, Minerva, apparently we have thirteen hours in a half day," he said, levelling his wand and casting a few revellaspells. "Some quite complex things are due to happen at midday, I mean thirteen o'clock, I do hope you don't mind if we watch it play out?"

"I don't suppose you'd stop it even if I did mind," said Minerva. "Enterprising imps, which group is that?"

"Well it's not the Hunting Marauders in the second; one jape per term is the rule of Marauding," said David. "It's not sophisticated enough for Salazar and the Lifemunchers, not that they are Marauders as such, and it's certainly below the talents of the Weird Marauders. Dear me, I believe this might be the work of the first years."

"Moderately well done, for such babes," said Minerva, who was working out the added complexities for herself. "WHAT are you going to do to them for disrupting lessons? The practical classes are all missing a possibly vital five minutes or so and I suspect Connie will be frothing!"

"Four and a half minutes," said David. "It won't make a lot of difference. I thought as they had seen fit to give us another hour, they might go to bed an hour early."

"Perfect," said Minerva. "Well, I have a lesson to go to, and I will be aware not to let it overrun. I see they've set the bell to go for five minutes before midday to get everyone congregating. I suppose they hope nobody will count the strokes at eleven, being twelve."

"Or rely on the fact that anyone who is counting is likely to be one of the officious kids everyone likes to be wrong anyway," said David. "We meet at thirteen o'clock."

"Sometimes, David, I wonder if you're any older than they are," said Minerva, "and then I remember you're way older than Albus ever was, and know when to be adult. And keeping young allows you to guide the wee limbs better I suppose."

oOo

The Clockwork Cacophany clamoured crazily, and most satisfactorily; and if there was a touch of Pink Floyd to it, nobody who recognised it minded, and anyone who didn't was not about to care one way or the other. The subsequent roar and rocks apparently detaching from the walls and rolling slowly and majestically caused a few screams, though none of them moved fast enough to pose a real danger had they been real. David walked towards them, did the Jareth hand thing, and apparently transfigured them into bubbles which he blew away.

The first year Marauders applauded this virtuosity in the headmaster, who had to understand that they were illusions to be able to change the illusion with such finesse.

"I fear that as you have interfered with the time of the professors," said David, when the noise died down and the clocks changed back to having more regular faces, "I am going to waste some of yours; as you must have been abroad half the night pulling off this stunt, you may go to bed an hour early for the rest of the week to catch up on your disturbed sleep, so you won't be having such nightmares again."

He smiled genially; it was a look Albus used to good effect on malefactors.

The youthful group looked crestfallen, but as Arzad whispered to his twin, it could have been a whole lot worse.

The Time Marauders had made their presence felt.

"I suppose you think you're clever or something to cause so much mayhem?" said Hermiette Dagworth, who was smarting under having screamed and run from illusory rocks.

"No, Dagworth, we think we're clever because we knew the right spells to be able to cause such mayhem; a slight, but significant difference," drawled Harry, in his best Draco voice. "Because we came to school knowing real spells, not a little bit of ickle pretty grooming. No wonder so many Ravenclaws are addled if you go to this Charm School and learn vanity, vacillating and vacuity."

Hermiette actually stamped her foot.

"It is not for vanity! We learn grooming spells because they are the single most useful spells most witches and wizards use in their lives! What will you do if you can only cast stupid jinxes when you want to be neat?"

"Use a muggle hairbrush and be glad that I won't have to worry if a dark wizard cares if I'm mussed when I bounce his best Unforgivable Curses," said Harry.

"How many dark wizards are we likely to meet?" said Hermiette, trying scorn.

Harry shrugged.

"Depends how many think they can take over the school: because we might be up for the next Triwizard. You know our Triwizard champions saw those dark wizards try to kidnap the Prince Peak lot, and thanks to their constant vigilance, they were quickly defeated. The Odessa lot threw the Killing curse at our Headmaster's predecessor at the previous Triwizard, and tried some dirty tricks at the one before when Professor Fraser was the champion. Oh and the one before that was in the Voldemort years of course. My cousin had enough trouble with dark wizards to be sure and teach me how to take care of myself."

"Sorry, and who was your cousin again?" asked Hermiette.

"Harry Potter. Because I carry a family name, not having parents who lumber me with a name of, or close to, one of the golden trio because they hope that their inutile spawning might in some wise benefit from being named after the heroes," said Harry, his eyes blazing. "I KNOW Hermione Granger, whose name you don't even bear, properly, Dagworth, and she would just so despise to know that a stupid creature like you was named for her."

"You do take on so when all I'm worried about is how much you're going to disrupt life with your stupid japes," whined Hermiette. It was finally sinking in that the muggleborn kid she looked down on was actually somebody in the Wizarding World.

"Don't be an ass," said Harry. "We played our term's jape; Marauders are only allowed one jape per term up to the fourth, and then we have to can it for being elderly. Lay such nefarious pleasures aside, if you will," he added seeing Hermiette entirely confused by the phrase 'can it'. Ace had picked up a lot of English idiom but the American idiom had, to some extent, rubbed off on her friends too. In between a desire to drawl in sesquipedalian periods like Lucius, Draco and Severus.

oOo

"Those kids have stolen several marches on us," said Seth, "and this is our last year for japes and we are bereft of Walter, who's a jolly good planner, because he's acting his age not his shoesize in the sixth."

"Oh well, poor Walter needed to feel he could pull up," said Chrys. "And it's just as well we have Yulan because eight of us would be inauspicious but it isn't in China, and as she's Chinese it makes it good luck."

"Maybe we should do something with crockery so we keep the theme of being in China," said Veronica.

"It's a bit tame to enchant teacups to sing Labyrinth songs," said Hasibul, "and anyway we've done teacups with that dippy creature and her tealeaves."

"Singing chamberpots?" suggested Niobe.

"It's a bit on the same theme though," said Lavazka, "and as such not…not displaying our virtuosity. Besides, most of us aren't really musical enough to manage much more than a simple round with input from Lilith."

"Aunt Bella once cured people of not being tigers," said Hasibul, "I suppose we could cure people of not being Labyrinth goblins?"

"Hate to mention it, Haz, old man, but for one thing it's repeating worse than cucumbers, and for another it's a little hard to turn people into beings that don't actually exist," said Crys. "And not very nice, because they really are travesties."

"Are we sticking with the Labyrinth theme?" asked Seth.

"We're on our mettle to do so," said Crys.

Hasibul gave a shout of joy.

"We build the tube of hands and bung people in the oubliette the Belle Marauders made, feed them a chocolate cauldron and then port them back to just past where they came from!" he declared.

"He appears to be on form," said Seth. "It'll take some doing, how do we do the tunnel of hands thing?"

"Well, obviously going through a particular doorway will gate them to the top," said Hasibul, "and I should think we ought to be more efficient at gates than we were with our first efforts. They hit a featherlight charm with the hands being no more than props really, we can make the tunnel as a bit of wizarding space off the oubliette. And then with a lot of Waffling logic on a time delay after picking up a chocolate cauldron they get sent back to the place from whence they came."

"Nice," said Chrys. "What happens about replacing the sweeties?"

"Engulfing charm," said Lavazka.

"We have a heap of them, and when one is taken, also with a time delay, it automatically engulfs one from the pile," added Veronica.

"Point that girl at Waffling logic," said Seth, who was no great arithmancer and bowed to Veronica's genius in that matter, as indeed did all the Weird Marauders, especially – to the shock of Madam Vector – the two Ravenclaws, Chrys and Yulan.

"You note that Haz comes up with the idea someone else has the skill to implement," said Veronica.

"And who is good with the charms so long as someone else crunches the numbers?" said Hasibul. "Besides, you liked the idea."

"Grumbling for form's sake," said Veronica. "It'll take a while."

"We still have the rest of September, such as it is, October, November and the first bit of December," said Seth. "And by the way, should we have caryatids, I mean Atalantes, on the door posts to warn people there's something hinky going on?"

"Not a bad idea," said Yulan. "Then they can avoid it and go another way if they are boring. I thought they were called Telamones?"

"They're called both," said Chrys. "There's probably some subtle difference in Ancient Greek that I never figured out, or cared to check up on."

"What do you think of Ancient Grease?" giggled Niobe.

"It makes the chips taste Rancid!" quipped back Veronica.

They might muck about and make jokes now that the serious business of the term's jape had been decided.

oOo

"I really don't know why you American kids have come to England to go to school, taking the places of English witches and wizards," said Walter Trimmer. Having failed to get anything out of Adam, he thought Amanda might be a softer target.

"I'm not to blame for all the things you don't know, Trimmer," said Amanda. "I expect it also covers most of your schoolwork if you're so busy with other people's business instead of getting on with your preparation." Amanda was still uncomfortable shortening the unfamiliar term, 'preparation', to 'prep'.

"So you are here on charity, taking scholarship places from English children!" said Trimmer. Amanda gave him a long, flat stare.

"No, Trimmer, we're paid for, because our mother works in England for an English wizard, and he values her highly enough to pay for us to come to this school. We do not take scholarships from others. Just as well you're paid for though, you aren't cute enough to earn a scholarship."

"Well, I think there's something fishy about it," said Trimmer, loudly, trying to rally support. "We know nothing about you, or your family; or even where you're from. What state do you come from?"

"Denial," snapped Amanda, deciding that sometimes only quoting Calvin and Hobbes was going to do any good. She got up and swept out of the Slytherin common room to polite applause from the Lifemunchers.

"You're loathsome, Trimmer," she heard Salazar say.

"Picking on new oiks, and so much younger than you is even lower than your normal efforts," added Sevvy.

Amanda did not hear anything else; she could present a cool front to the bully in public but it tore her apart inside and made her feel sick to the stomach having to do so. She took herself quietly off behind the broom shed to cry, which is where Adam duly found her, having been bloodpulsed by the not-marauders of her own year to use the blood-pull he had in him from elven blood to find his sister.

Adam gave her a cuddle, and ground his teeth to hear about Trimmer. He left Amanda in a better state of mind and went to collect Andy.

Trimmer was extracted from his fellows and led with conventional muggle frog marching behind the broom sheds later that day, where he was the recipient of a thorough, and muggle-style, pasting.

"Don't pick on my sister again," said Adam.

"Damn right," said Andy. "Not either of them."

"And if you bleat, I'll ask Lilith Snape what to do about you," said Adam. "I'm sure she'll give me some pointers."

Trimmer, who was blubbing, believed this. Lilith gave short shrift to anyone she considered a bully, and though Trimmer did not see how a spot of simple interrogation could be bullying, he had been in trouble with Lilith before and it had taken weeks for the boils to subside. He acquiesced, and subsequently told Connie Hardbroom that he had flown his broom into the Whomping Willow.

This was a not unreasonable reason for the bruises, and Connie chose to accept that explanation. Sometimes getting to the bottom of things was not wise, and if Trimmer had fallen foul of someone able to rough him up so comprehensively, he had probably deserved it.

It took Trimmer all day before he discovered that he also sported a pig's tail, as Amy had heard about it too, and unlike her brothers was more ready to use a wizarding solution rather than a muggle one.

The honour of the Gardiner family was satisfied; and Walter Trimmer no longer had plans to work through each in turn until he found out all he could!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Valda Schutzstab was a much happier child now that she was writing to Adelard again, and getting long letters in reply. Adelard was scathing of the ministry and told Valda that he was considering applying for a post in Insurance Divination, because with the training he had received he would probably get a post as Insurance Assessor's assistant, not as high paid a job as some, but more interesting than chief lickspittle to a junior paper pusher. Valda actually managed to laugh over that. Adelard also wrote that he was considering a riskier alternative job, as a freelance diviner for Anwalten and Curse Breakers, as he had spoken to one Jaromir Frolich, a freelance curse breaker, who mentioned that a clue or two about a good course to take with some of the harder curses might be handy.

Valda wrote back that she hoped that Adelard would choose a job that would make him happy, but that he should consider that being poor was probably not going to be easy if the risky course was likely to leave him out of pocket, and potentially less likely to be employed for having tried it.

It may be said that this made Adelard determined to try the expedient of freelancing; because he could always do it on the side whilst keeping the safe and boring ministry job. It was the first time Adelard had ever gone out on a limb in his life, and if he felt a little guilty that it was against the advice of Valda, he reconciled himself with the thought that the poor kid had some rather bad values.

Had he been less cautious he would probably have gone to beat up the child's father as soon as he had that first letter from school from her, but instead he went to add deposition to Agata's report that she was abused, being the one to whom she owed the life debt. Being a pure-blooded wizard of good standing in a ministry job – it still all counted – gave Agata's report more credence, as he was not the 'weirdo blood-taint who used a questionable skill to peer at little girls' described by Valda's father.

Adelard was most put out by this description and served notice on Herr Schutztab that he would be happy to meet the fellow any time for such imputations, and that if Herr Schutzstab refused to duel, then the Loënzahn family Anwalt would be calling upon him in due course with regards to legal proceedings.

Schutzstab was a bully who despised divination, and assumed that Adelard was some kind of sissy little better than a squib. He accepted the invitation to duel. Adelard told Valda about it; her father did not bother.

Being Adelard, the duel was an official one, presided over by Vehmgerichten; and would duly be reported in the news, so Adelard did not want anything to come as a shock to Valda. Valda wrote back, a rather tear-stained note begging him to withdraw as her father knew a lot of curses. Adelard replied reassuringly that he hadn't worked with loonies like Zlatko Asimov for years without learning a few for himself, and that he would try not to kill her father. This show of self confidence reassured Valda. Her letter also infuriated Adelard, who suspected that some of the curses might have been used on her.

Nobody could accuse Adelard of brilliance or originality, but he had begun attending the ECC because it seemed to give advantages; and kept up some at least of the physical regimen, as he prided himself on his fitness and rather splendid body. Consequently as Schutzstab fired stinging hexes, the blasting curse, and the spell that was not quite the cruciatus curse used by the piece of statuary formerly known as the German duelling champion, he laughed at such minor corridor curses and held his shield. As Schutzstab paused for breath, Adelard went into action. He had trouble with wandless and wordless magic both together, but could handle either one, because his will was strong; and after binding, tickling and removing all of Herr Schutzstab's bogeys in the form of green bats that pointed and giggled, he cycled his opponent through as many odd creatures as he could recall Zlatko ever using, because he was a very solid transfigurationist. He left Schutzstab to face the count, still bound, still squirming, and dancing feebly from the ankles down in a partial transfiguration to a vulture, being the nastiest creature Adelard could think of.

When the count was up, he strolled off, leaving the vulture squawking that he had to undo the enchantment as the vulture planned to marry and could hardly sire a child with a cloaca.

Well, the goblin nurse who had so clumsily warned Valda had been correct, then. Adelard resolved to have his Anwalt find her and offer her more convivial employment. Adelard had no problem in preventing Herr Schutzstab from marrying some unfortunate girl and bringing any more nasty little racists into the world, and bust a gut on what chanting he had picked up, mostly since leaving school, to make the transfiguration permanent. It would take a curse breaker of Jaromir's calibre to undo THAT.

The partial Vulture was not going to be impaired in his daily life as he had hands and a mouth; the nose was a beak, and he had feathers all over, and he had a cloaca, which meant that there could be no comeback of preventing him permanently from performing magic, which would have been a sticky legal point. It was the responsibility of the seconds to undo their man, with the use of a professional cursebreaker if necessary. And the best cursebreaker in Germany was Adelard's second, his other second being his brother.

The papers had a field day, and Adelard was briefly famous enough to make it into 'Hochehexen' as the most handsome diviner in Germany. Because Adelard spoke freely about his grudge against Schutzstab, without going into details about the small service he had been able to do for the man's daughter, his fag while he was at school, he was briefly the darling of German house-witches for his kindness to small girls.

Valda kept the picture from 'Hochehexen', though she was, it may be said, a little jealous of all the female reporters who wanted to talk to him!

oOo

The sequel to the duel occurred when Herr Schutzstab had been unable to find a cursebreaker capable of breaking Adelard's iron will.

Valda was in history, which had been a fairly exciting lesson already, since the feral desk on fowl's legs had been rampaging in the corridor and the second years had scuttled into the classroom and were peering anxiously round the door, waiting for Frau Professor Weasley.

Harmony, ambushed by the desk, fell back on being English at it.

"Sit! Stay!" she commanded.

The desk, taken aback, subsided, rattling.

"Open up," ordered Harmony; and the desk sheepishly opened its lid to reveal a mass of disordered papers, ping pong balls and other debris thrown at the desk by those taunting it or trying to escape.

"Hmm, that can't be comfortable," said Harmony, banishing the lot to her room to sort later, since one set of papers appeared to be in the handwriting of little Dimitar Zhikov, who had been tearfully apologetic but cagey about why he couldn't hand in his essay. That was to be got to the bottom of later.

The desk shut again with a creak of relief.

"Follow me," said Harmony, and led the remarkably quiescent desk into the history room. The students stayed at a safe distance. "You may stay and listen, but if you do you must be quiet," said Harmony. "If you wish to leave at any point, go and stand by the door to be let out."

The desk hunkered down by the dais, and Harmony gave it a kindly pat.

The second years thought she was almost a goddess.

They gave her their full attention!

Their attention was rudely interrupted as Harmony was explaining the significance of the Gurg to Giantkind by the sudden appearance of a very small elf covered in horrible excrescences and screaming in pain right in front of Valda.

"Helps Wennie, please-please-please little mistress!" squealed the elf. Valda instinctively reached to pull the fungus away, and it started crawling onto her. She screamed in terror and pain.

"Stand back," said Harmony to the rest, and started using repelling spells on the fungi, driving them off both small girls, whilst giving a blood yell for some older Marauders.

She got Attila and Cacilia, Lazlo, the Eulenspeigel twins and the five in the lower sixth which had been the ones she had shouted for. Zyrillis and Lazlo started the ancient Egyptian chant that had saved Lilith, and the twins and Cacilia joined in while Attila and the other lower sixth burned those fungi crawling away, sent by Harmony's repelling spells. The feral desk came over to see what was happening and stepped back hastily as a questing tentacle reached for one of its fowls' legs.

It was not long before the awful lifeforms were gone, and the little elf healed, and Valda held her sobbing in her arms. Valda was sobbing too.

"Valda, my dear, that was well done. Crazy like a fox, but well done," said Harmony. "Take – Wennie, was it? – to the school nurse and you may stay with her, I'll let you off homework."

"I want Adelard," sobbed Valda.

"I'll see about getting him to come in," said Harmony. "Thank you, everyone. Now perhaps the class can resume, we have a good ten minutes before the bell, and you will want to take down your preparation essay titles and if you are quick you may also discuss how you plan to tackle the essay."

The second subsided totally. Frau Weasley was so very ENGLISH in her imperturbability.

Harmony was projecting imperturbability to stop herself being sick; this is what had happened to Lilith, probably happened to elves frequently. Something had to be done.

Eve was manhandled out by her fellows as she seemed to be in something of a daze.

"It's all right, Eve, all sorted," said Wencelada.

"No, you don't understand," said Eve. "I had a vision of it happening to someone else, and I think it may have been Aglaia!"

"Por Dios!" said Wencelada. "I would not wish that on anyone! But we cannot warn her until the next task… if it happens before then…. Eve, as you, too, are English, perhaps you can lay cards, and read tealeaves and have a better connection about her…"

Eve nodded. She loathed Aglaia Hallow, but would not wish that on anyone.

Except perhaps anyone named Dolokhov.

oOo

Cacilia had a free period and pulsed Harmony that she would see to having Adelard brought in.

As it happened, she did not have to, as he was arriving at the front door when she went to see Agata.

"What's happening?" he demanded.

"All under control now," said Cacilia. "She and little Wennie are in the sick bay; you know your way."

Adelard nodded thanks and took off up the stairs two at a time.

Valda was sitting on a bed with the little elf.

"ADELARD!" she cried, and launched herself into his arms.

Adelard soothed her.

"Tell me all about it," he said.

"Oh Adelard, Wennie turned up all covered in ….stuff, horrible stuff, and it crawled onto me, and it HURT, and then lots of people came and chanted and got rid of it and killed it," said Valda.

Adelard nodded.

"Marauders," he said. "They know things the rest of us can't even guess at. I believe it's from the place rubbish is banished to."

"But… but how did Wennie get there?" asked Valda.

Adelard put his hands on her shoulders.

"Some people send their elves there if they displease them, you know," he said. "Perhaps Wennie can tell us."

Valda nodded.

"Wennie, what happened?" she asked.

Wennie shuddered and started rocking.

"Wennie will have to go back home and be sent there again!" she squeaked. "Wennie will have to return to Master, and Wennie doesn't want to!" she started biting her fingers.

Adelard took her hands firmly away from her mouth.

"Some people reckon that sending an elf to the evanesco place constitutes freeing them, you know, so you don't have to return," he said. "You don't have to self punish, you know; some people broke the curse."

"Wennie is scared to be free!" said Wennie. "Wennie doesn't feel free, Wennie feels she must go back!"

"Wennie," said Adelard, "I am going to marry the little Mistress when she grows up; and if she gives you a sock, I will pay you to be her servant, and stay here with her, with livery like the school elves. Then you will feel safe, won't you?"

Wennie looked at Valda with big scared eyes.

Valda gasped.

"My father sent her there?" she asked.

"Apparently," said Adelard, "but you won't get any sense out of her until you arrange her to be free and promise to take care of her."

Valda had taken the advice Adelard had given her the previous year, and had talked to her elves, and explained the curse of the fey to them, in the hopes of freeing them one day. Being used and made helpless by owning slaves had infuriated her at first, but she had actually started to get to know her slaves and be kind to them, which was why Wennie had trusted her to put things right.

"Wennie, I will always look after you," said Valda, who had taken on board lessons of noblesse oblige from Adelard. "Now take this sock."

Wennie's ears went up.

"Wennie can work for Mistress Valda and not be shamed?" she squeaked. "Not never has to go back to Master?"

"That's right," said Valda. "And I don't want to go back to the Master either, and the headmistress is making me a ward of the school."

Wennie grabbed the sock and threw herself into Valda's arms, sobbing in relief.

"Now tell me how it happened," said Adelard, firmly, putting an arm around the little elf.

"Ooooh! Master came home from the third curse breaker and he was still feathery, and Wennie giggled, because he looked so funny, and he pointed his wand, and Wennie was in a bad place with nasties! And Wennie knew she could find her family blood and came to Mistress Valda because Mistress Valda knows about curses on elveses and would know what to do, and she did HELP Wennie!" said Wennie, worshipfully.

Valda wriggled.

"I didn't know what to do," she muttered. "It was others who saved you. And me."

"But Mistress Valda held Wennie, and tried to pull them things off!" said Wennie.

"Valda was very brave," said Adelard. "And it's fortunate that big people further up the school knew what to do. And you are both safe now, and I will have to see about getting some proper clothes for you."

"Shouldn't she have school uniform?" asked Valda.

"The Kaiserin would have forty fits," said Adelard. "Though she might not mind her sitting in your lessons and learning so long as it isn't official. And some of the staff would accept preparation from her if she wanted to, and she could take exams as an external student at the free school. That can be arranged."

"Wennie gets to learn lessons?" said the little elf.

"Don't see why not," said Adelard. "but let's not mention it except to Marauders; they'll help you cover for it."

"They have been quite nice to me," said Valda. "Actually, Ilarion said that I was less of a pain than Simone Fabrier, which for him was tact."

Adelard laughed.

"And you know it as well intentioned, which is good. You've learned a lot, Valda, and I'm so proud of you now."

Valda beamed.

"I didn't know how people got on without hurting other people before," she said.

"You poor kiddy," said Adelard. "Well, I suggest you might want to summon all your elves and let Wennie talk to them, and free them all. I'll hire them."

"Can you afford to?" asked Valda, anxiously.

Adelard shrugged.

"I have inheritance in my own right, even though I'm not the heir; I don't have to work, you know, but I choose to, because it's proper to do so. I can afford to hire some free elves."

"Oh, I am relieved," said Valda. "I don't think I could manage being poor when we get married."

"Well we shan't be, my good ass," said Adelard.

"When will the curse wear off my father?" asked Valda.

"When he dies, unless he gets an adequate curse-breaker first," said Adelard, grimly. "I did some digging, and he's got a bride lined up who is younger than I am, who has never met him, in order to get a son. Her family have called it off while he's feathery, and I'm going to make sure he is never un-feathered. Poor kid doesn't deserve to marry a man like that."

Valda paled.

"So nurse knew?" she asked.

"Yup," said Adelard. "I took her to safety, but I couldn't do anything about the elves. You can. Now, I'm about to tender my resignation to the Ministry, and I'm going to do it in the style of the Marauders by firing English puddings into the face of my boss from my wand, because I feel like it, and then I shall see to providing a home for your elves, who can work for me and help me build up a business as a diviner and finder. They can go places to help me with pure telesma to add to the rituals of finding and knowing. Though I might also take a year at Prince Peak to learn more; after I've pacified my father for abandoning the job he found me."

"Will he be very angry?" gasped Valda.

Adelard shrugged.

"He'll wax irritable, and when I've explained he'll give me a lecture on hastiness and profligacy, and then he'll help me sort out exactly what to do next," he said. "My father and I understand each other very well. And he was proud of me for the duel over my family name, and, what wasn't mentioned in the papers, for my girl."

Valda glowed. She was his girl! How nice it must be to have a father who understood one, and who would actually do something to help!

oOo

Agata was taken aback to see a confident Adelard telling her that she had a new pupil, who had to be a secret pupil.

"And if you want fees paid, I'll pay them," said Adelard. "Elf kid is a year or so older than Valda at most, she'll soon catch up if the Marauders help. She can be Valda's servant officially."

"We don't have servants here; just to stop some little monsters being young princelings at the rest," said Agata.

"There's precedent, however," said Adelard, who used the library quite as much as any Marauder, albeit with different ends in sight. "Where a pupil is an orphan and has feudal dependents it's permitted to have those servants at school with them rather than leave them with nothing to do. Our ancestors hated the idea of servants with nothing to do carousing in the family home while the master or mistress was at school," he added cynically.

"Possibly in some cases with good reason," said Agata. "Very well, she can just add the child to her dormitory and take her in to classes and if nothing is said about it, nothing need be said about it. I didn't hear anything and it's nothing to do with me."

"Thanks, Madam Bacso," said Adelard. "Wennie is most upset by being sent to that place, and I think being away from Valda would destroy her."

"Well, the girl has come on a long way that anyone should cling to her," said Agata. "Send the Defending Marauders to me on your way out, Adelard."

Adelard grinned and bowed to her as if he were still one of her sixth formers.

oOo

"We hadn't even done anything to Penka Giorgieva yet," said Nedelya, aggrieved, as they surveyed the Headmistress warily.

"Was there a reason that you were going to?" asked Agata.

"Yes," said Nedelya.

"Oh, no," said Daffodil.

"I think I believe the yes," said Agata. "What's she done now?"

"Threw Dimitar Zhikov's work into the feral desk," said Ilarion, deciding that as Nedelya had put her foot in it, prevarication was hopeless. "We were hoping to get it back, but I think Frau Weasley has it in hand."

"Ah, well, the English," said Agata. "I am sure she will manage. I did not call you in because you were in trouble, though I shall have to punish you if I HEAR of anything happening to Fraulein Giorgieva. It's about Valda."

Agata filled the children in on the need to keep Wennie close to Valda, and that she might as well learn at the same time, but of course it was not to be something that was generally known.

"We'll manage that," said Marlene, equably.

"Jolly clever of her to come here," said Xanthos. "We'll catch her up, and see that she knows which teachers will mark work and we'll get big ones to mark the work for anyone who won't."

"It's only Frau Kluba and Frau Junger," said Ilarion. "The rest wouldn't turn a hair if a crowd of goblins started, so long as they could do the work."

This, Agata had to admit, was probably true enough. She was impressed despite herself that Clovis' adopted son Radagas had gone to Prince Peak a year early and was, by Clovis' accounts holding his own. Fyra and Alrik, who had been taught by Jade and her friends were accounted some of the cleverest children of their age; and the elf Vya had performed very creditably in the Duelling Contest. Agata's prejudices had almost completely crumbled away, but she knew her parents would never accept non humans alongside pure and near pure blood children, and whilst those attitudes prevailed, it was better for HER to have the training of them, and the chance to change their outlook, than to have some racist pure bred school starting independently to Durmstrang.

She dismissed the Marauders.

"Idiot," said Ilarion to Nedelya.

"Sorry," said Nedelya, "but I say, did you notice that she only told us she didn't want to hear of anything happening to Penka? She didn't ban us from doing her over."

Ilarion brightened.

"So she didn't," he said. "Let's collect Valda and Wennie and let them in on the plotting to cheer them up. AND the first year lot."

oOo

Valda was rather flattered to be involved in a Marauder planning meeting, and Wennie kept her mouth shut and her big delicate ears open as she listened and learned that this was not about ganging up on another girl for no reason, but to punish someone who had picked on a smaller child.

Ivaylo, Klarizsa and Magda were also flattered to be included, though Klarizsa did say tentatively that punishing Penka ought to be the province of the first.

"You're a bit thin on numbers, so we thought we'd combine with you," said Ilarion. "Had you any ideas?"

"No," admitted Klarizsa.

"If she thinks it's acceptable to take prep and do something close to destroying it, maybe we should burn all her prep," said Valda.

There was a shocked silence.

"It doesn't work like that," said Marlene, gently. "Just because some git thinks something is fine, doesn't mean decent folk stoop to it; like sending people to the evanesco place."

Valda went red.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"You didn't know," said Marlene.

There was an interruption as Simone Fabrier walked in on them.

"You are having a meeting and have invited non-marauders but not me. Or Renate," she added hastily, her lip quivering.

"Didn't think you'd much enjoy plotting how to get back at Penka for bullying the babes," said Daffodil.

"But yes I should; Oh how I should!" said Simone. "She calls me cry-baby and she nips me!"

"WELL!" said Daffodil. "You should have told us sooner; but you've told us now, so sit right down and plot."

"Oh YES m- Daffodil!" said Simone happily, almost reverting to the use of the possessive pronoun. "Has she also hurt the little elf?"

"Nope, but she would if she could, this is Wennie, and if you can keep your mouth shut about it, we're going to see she gets an education alongside us," said Daffodil.

"Oh, how splendid! I will help all I can!" said Simone, who fortunately did not hear Xanthos muttering to Ilarion that Simone's best help would be to not explain anything.

"Now Frau Weasley has tamed the feral desk do you think we could persuade it to be set on Penka?" asked Nedelya.

"It doesn't like us," said Ilarion.

"We could try apologising," said Valda, brightly. She had discovered this was a way to get people to like you if you had offended them.

"Actually, that's rather profound," said Ilarion.

They ran down to the history classroom where the desk was still brooding. It snapped a bit as they came in.

"I say, desk," said Ilarion, "We've disrespected you because we didn't know you had a consciousness. And we're sorry if it upset you. We'd like to ask a favour."

Somehow the desk managed to tilt itself to look interested.

"One of the bits of stuff thrown in you was by a girl who looks like this," said Xanthos, producing an illusion from his wand, "to hurt a little boy. We don't like people who hurt others, and we wouldn't have hurt you if we knew you were a people not just a thing."

"Can it understand concepts that subtle?" asked Daffodil. The desk snarled at her. "Ooer, sorry, apparently so," said Daffodil.

The desk rocked up and down a couple of times, emitted a creak that sounded almost like a laugh, and headed out of the door.

"Did we offend it?" asked Nedelya, anxiously.

"I don't know," said Daffodil.

"Well, we had better hop to Kaffee und Kuchen and start formulating contingency plans, or the Kaiserin will be most waxy," said Ilarion.

They dispersed to the dining hall, and discovered that far from being offended, the desk had caught their meaning very well as it pursued Penka Giorgieva to her table, snapping at her robes as she ran. It stationed itself in the doorway, obviously planning on waiting for her to come out.

Ilarion whooped.

"WONDERFUL desk!" he said, daring to pat it as Harmony had. The desk leaned into the patting. Ilarion, greatly daring, hugged it.

None of the other pupils got away without being snapped at a little, only the Defending Marauders and the children they had brought with them to apologise; but then, as Ilarion said, having a feral desk in the school was more interesting than having one that was tame all the while.

Harmony raised an eyebrow. Apparently the kids had learned something from her firm, courteous handling of the desk.

She had an announcement to make after eating.

"It has come to my notice," she said, "That the notes of several first years in a selection of subjects have been thrown into the feral desk. Now, I have reason to believe that the same person did the throwing in each case, though I may be wrong. And I'm going to ask the desk to stand behind the chair of each and all culprits in turn," she added.

"Does it understand so much?" asked Agata, startled.

"Apparently," said Harmony, dryly, as the desk trundled off and came to rest behind Penka's chair.

"No others? asked Agata. The desk shook its body.

"Very well, Fraulein Giorgieva, I will see you in my study, immediately after the bell," said Harmony.

"You aren't taking the antics of that lousy desk as an accusation are you?" demanded Penka. "Surely even the English aren't that stupid?"

"Well apart from answering some questions later, which may lead to more trouble for you, you will be doing a detention for me, writing out one hundred times, "The English are stupid enough to kill arrogant dark wizards to save everyone else," said Harmony. "And by the way, I am related now to Viktor Krumm through marriage, as I am the ward of his wife's father, so you will be doing a second detention writing one hundred more lines of "I have often regretting having spoken but never regretted remaining silent," since I am quite capable of understanding the filthy things you are saying in Bulgarian, or in your case, with an English pun, Vulgarian."

The Marauders applauded the word play.

Harmony had very little idea of the precise nature of the words but as Ilarion, Nedelya and Idaylo had all winced it was easy to guess their nature.

Being related to Viktor Krumm, even in a secondhand sort of way did no harm to Harmony's kudos.

Penka had a very uncomfortable interview with Harmony, Attila, Cacilia and Agalisse Schreiber, all of whose work was found in the desk. Shortly thereafter, Penka was finding her spare time cut short by a series of detentions for wantonly interfering with the staff by stealing and disposing of the work of the youngest in the year; that it might be interfering with the staff and bring their ire onto her head had not occurred to her! Those involved were happy to take turns at sitting detentions with her, and Harmony moreover asked the feral desk to prevent her from leaving the classroom in the case of there being no adult supervision.

It may be said that those who had befriended the feral desk joined Harmony over the weekend – the losing of which made her husband groan in resignation more than disbelief – to give the feral desk a good waxing and polishing, and to buff down and paint its metal legs. The desk thought a great deal of itself after this and pursued a visiting prospective parent all the way from the castle to the village.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Pharamond was a happy boy.

The owl bringing good news had finally arrived; his father's goblin mistress Zena had given birth to a son, who was being named Amadis, after an ancient hero of Gaul, and mother and baby were doing very well. Pharamond's father wrote a short note full of the emotion he could not put into words almost glowing from the paper; and his mother wrote a longer one with more details about the baby and how well Zena was doing. Suzanne Duval did not enjoy the physical side of marriage and was delighted that Zena did; the two women were great friends.

Pharamond was not so overcome with his own joy that he failed to notice misery in others, however.

Homère Tisserand came to the history lesson with a swollen red face and dragging steps. He set Pharamond and his fellows a chapter to read and comment on, and lifted his desk lid.

Pharamond got up and went to the desk.

"Has the rat dumped you?" he asked quietly, but bluntly.

Tisserand blew his nose hard, and fished around in the pocket of his robe.

"I got this by owl this morning," he said.

Pharamond read,

_Dear Homère,_

_Our relationship is going nowhere and it is better to end it now. I thought it might be amusing to date a teacher, but I fear you are every bit as boring as the profession sounds. I hoped you might introduce me to someone like your pretty Triwizard champion; working our way through your boys together might have been a thrill. However, as it is, you cannot compete with the pretty boy I have found selling wind wands to tourists at the seaside. Farewell forever, oh and by the way, history sucks,_

_Armand."_

Pharamond whistled through his teeth.

"Sa sa!" he said. "There's enough there to hand to an Enquêteur over his suggestions you pimp us all. Will you do so?"

"No!" said Tisserand. "It is a loathsome idea, but it will be dragged all across the courts, and my name… enough parents will believe that I would do something like that. I would not turn down…. But that's different."

"Quite so," said Pharamond. "And his surname?"

"Sauvage," said Tisserand.

"Appropriate," said Pharamond. "May I be excused history?"

"What are you going to do?" asked Tisserand.

"Break bounds egregiously in a manner unbefitting to a prefect and school champion to see what I can find out," said Pharamond. "I wouldn't want to drop a ritual curse on someone who had been forced to write such a letter at wand-point, for example, which is possible, and should not be ruled out. May I keep this letter for a while? It is a ritual component."

"Do; and all his love letters to me are in the right hand drawer of the desk in my bedroom if that's at all helpful," said Tisserand.

Pharamond nodded, and quietly exited the room.

"Where is Pharamond going?" hissed Salomé d'Hautbois to Orlinda Schwalbe. Both were chanters and Salomé counted herself amongst Pharamond's friends, being both musical and a member of the ECC.

Orlinda shrugged.

Hauvoise Nuitobscur giggled, but then she punctuated everything with a giggle.

"Something to do with Queen Homère's tears no doubt," she whispered. "I wonder if he wants to spank Pharamond?"

"You are a silly creature," muttered Salomé.

"Are you girls having trouble?" asked Homère, sharply.

"No, sir," said Orlinda, hastily.

"Then less chatter," said Homère.

Pharamond went to the History teacher's room and removed the love letters; if there were no coercion to this Armand, Homère Tisserand would only hurt himself more reading them over and over. This was certainly enough ritual material as a talisman to link to Armand Sauvage, both to track him and, if necessary, to drop a curse on him.

Pharamond was not a great geomancer, though he knew enough not to be embarrassed by the Triwizard's second test; but he could map out using a ritual link, and had been coached enough by Lilith, mostly, and Darryl in the holidays to step into fey space and break bounds a bit more surreptitiously than by other means.

The handsome quidditch player was at the waterfront, with his arm around a very pretty young man.

"I have dumped the stupid teacher," he was saying. "And now I am all yours, my dear, and I look forward to finding out all about your own magic wand."

_Homère fell for this crap? Poor bastard, he must be lonely,_ thought Pharamond.

"I am glad; you belong to me and me alone," said the pretty wand hirer, pouting. Pharamond raised an eyebrow; the fellow had blonde curls not unlike those he had himself, and such, thought Pharamond, must Salai, Leonardo da Vinci's lover have been. By all accounts he was a pouting tantrum-throwing brat of a man. Perhaps Armand was as taken in as he had taken Homère in; but then, Pharamond was prejudiced against anyone with so cheesy a chat up line, and with such insults about his teacher.

The added complication was the handsome, but not excessively so, half goblin who approached.

"So: you stand me up for this creature?" he said to the Pretty Boy.

Pretty boy shrugged.

"Go away, Ithier; you bore me. You talk too much," said Pretty Boy.

"Yes; leave him alone or you will regret it," Armand reached for his wand.

Ithier shook a fist.

"I am well shot of you; you never wished to be serious, never!" he cried, striding off.

Pharamond followed in Fey space, moved ahead, and materialised.

"Pardon me, Monsieur, I overheard your quarrel with the short and curly one, and I have a proposition for you," he said.

"You are even younger than he; I am no cradle snatcher," said Ithier.

"You misunderstand," said Pharamond. "The one your erstwhile inamorato has latched onto has just dumped someone I count as a friend. It seemed to me that if you commiserated with each other, as you are looking for something serious, and so is he, you might both find something more than a bit of fun together."

"Keep talking," said Ithier.

"He's a teacher at Beauxbatons," said Pharamond.

Ithier looked impressed.

"Do you think he'd teach me anything?" he said. "Even if my family could afford it, half goblins weren't in when I was eleven."

"I should think he'd teach you enough to enter the EGG to be permitted to carry a wand, and then as much as you wanted to learn, if you were still together," said Pharamond. "He's a history teacher, but he's more than adequate in most basic fields. Shall I set up a meeting?"

"Yes," sad Ithier, hungrily. "Unless he's so decrepit it would be a chore."

"He's about thirty five and keeps himself fit. He likes to dance," said Pharamond.

"Why aren't you after him if he's so good?" asked Ithier, suspiciously.

"I don't butter my bread the same side as you and he do," said Pharamond, "but I like him well enough to want to see him happy, and to see Armand and Curlylocks unhappy."

Ithier considered this.

"Fair enough," he said. "When and where?"

"There's a café along the strand," said Pharamond. "I'll talk him into meeting you there on Saturday, about ten of the clock. Up to you and him then; I'm not cupid, but I do know two lonely, serious minded people who might have a lot in common when I see them."

"I ain't totally serious; I like to have fun too," said Ithier.

"Well, don't let Homère keep you out partying all night," said Pharamond. "He's a cynic; not easy to get to know. But then the good things in life aren't easy, are they?"

"Well, I can go with that," said Ithier.

oOo

Pharamond ran down Homère Tisserand at lunch, reflecting that he was going to have to work hard in lunch time to catch up his work.

"M. Tisserand, I have seen the other man, and he looks like an older version of me," he said. "All curls, but he's a pouty bastard. He dumped his boyfriend for the quidditch bitch; and I met his erstwhile boyfriend, Ithier, and I suggested you might both like to meet to run down your ex lovers and discuss revenge. You should talk to someone; and I don't have the life experience to sympathise properly," he added.

"I will never love again, never!" mourned Homère.

"Never is a long time, sir; but knowing others who share your preference who have a like experience has to be good, yes?" said Pharamond.

"Oh very well, I suppose so," said Homère. Pharamond beamed.

"In the mean time I shall work on some ideas I am having," he said. Now he knew where Curlylocks lived, obtaining a sample of his curls from a hairbrush would be no difficulty; and then with Armand's letters, it did not matter who did and who was done if both of them had haemorrhoids and sported a cauliflower in the place of their manhood. Carefully made with a tube through so it could be used for the more basic functions.

It brought a whole new dimension to the endearment, 'mon petit chou-fleur'

oOo

Homère Tisserand came home on Saturday positively glowing.

"Ithier is a very serious minded young man," he said, "Without being in the least bit stuffy. I am going to hire him as my valet for the time being, in order to teach him enough for the EGG; and as I get to know him, we shall see."

"Excellent," said Pharamond. He could always coach Ithier in being a good valet if the man had no idea. Pharamond had a goblin valet at home who tried to bully him into appropriate sartorial taste and tutted over Pharamond's flamboyance, but he knew how to care for clothes, and Pharamond's father was a man who insisted that his son – and now his other children – should know something at least of all the tasks carried out by those who worked for them, to appreciate what was accomplished. Pharamond could make shift to cook and clean, as well as harness horses to a carriage, curry them and see to their hooves and wings. And most certainly to care for his own clothes.

It was not entirely an altruistic move.

Pharamond had no wish for Homère to resume the crush he had had on his star pupil. It was too embarrassing.

If he, too, liked Ithier well enough, he would teach him chanting. It would help make up for any deficiencies in his education.

Meanwhile, having collected the samples he needed of Curlylocks, Pharamond went into action. It was a chant he preferred to undertake on his own, since he did not want to get the others into trouble. It was in this, perhaps, that Pharamond did not fully appreciate the code of the Marauders, that all got into trouble together; but then, had he been younger, he might not have felt the responsibility so much of an adult sending quite outrageous ritual curses to other adults. It was assault within the meaning of the act.

Philomène, of course, felt him concentrating, and came to demand an explanation. Pharamond hesitated; and then filled her in. His girlfriend's ego was still fragile enough that she might be hurt badly if he left her out of knowing. Besides, she was under seventeen and not legally liable.

"Can I help?" she asked.

"You could, but I'm making this a lone effort, so only one of us goes up on charges if they sue," said Pharamond. "You can keep cave for me though."

Philomène was more than happy to do so.

And Pharamond began the complex chant that named each in turn, but would delay so all the effects were simultaneous. It was funnier that way. He picked a time when Homère Tisserand was in the staff room, to be certain to give him an alibi; and the only two teachers capable of it, Amédé Cuilliere and Desolina Uccello.

He decided to eschew Finnish naming magic; that would take a curse breaker more competent than any currently in France outside of the upper forms of Beauxbatons, and Desolina Uccello, who was more than capable of handling anything like that. However, this was not generally known.

Pharamond laid a temporal component on the curse, of three months, so that if the recipients had not found a curse breaker before then, the curses would cease on their own. Anything more would be unduly vindictive.

It would have been hilarious to watch the ensuing inevitable squabbles, but tempting as it was to go and look from feyspace, Pharamond firmly put aside the temptation as too childish.

He released the chant, and took himself to bed after kissing Philomène good night. He was drained; but it was a job well done.

Homère was avenged.

oOo

Olympe introduced Homère Tisserand to the Enquêteur.

"M. Tisserand, do you know one Armand Sauvage?" he asked.

"Know, present tense? No. Knew, historically? Yes," said Homère. "Our…friendship is over. Why, what has he done?"

An eyebrow raised infinitesimally.

"You think he might have done something to bring him to the ears and eyes of the law, M. Tisserand?" asked the Enquêteur.

Homère shrugged.

"He is a liar and a cheat; as such I cannot guess what he might do."

"He has said you have a grudge against him."

"I do. I hope he lives to a vast old age surrounded by nothing but lesbians," said Homère.

"An interesting curse," said the Enquêteur. "He blows both ways?"

"I suspect so," said Homère. "I have a grudge against him. So what? So I am sure have others he has seduced and deceived cruelly."

"Oh, that may be so," said the Enquêteur. "However, you appear to be his most recent discarded lover."

"They say revenge is a dish best served cold," said Homère. "And I am too distraught, but too distraught to consider anything but nursing my poor broken heart at this moment."

"I believe you have employed the ex lover of M. Sauvage's new lover?" persisted the Enquêteur. Olympe's eyebrows went up. This she had not known.

Homère gestured gracefully with one hand.

"In adversity, allies," he said.

"An uneducated young man, I believe, incapable of sending any ritual spell?"

"Absolutely!" said Homère. "Actually, now that Darryl Zabini is running his own school and is not teaching here any more, I don't think I know anyone capable of sending a ritual spell. It's certainly beyond me."

"Ah?"

"I'm a historian. You can ask our new chanting teacher if you like, but I wouldn't know where to start."

"And who is he?"

"She. She's just out of Durmstrang; nice girl, very shy," said Homère. "I have no idea how she survived Durmstrang!"

"Well, I will speak with her," said the Enquêteur.

"What has happened to Armand?" asked Homère.

The Enquêteur told him, and Homère burst into laughter. He laughed so hard he had to sit down, and gently rocked as tears of laughter flowed down his face.

The Enquêteur mentally shrugged. This was the first time the man had heard of the so-amusing sending; nobody would collapse so totally in laughter if they had any guilty knowledge of it.

Desolina was sent for, and asked if she knew an Armand Sauvage. Desolina thought hard.

"The name does not sound familiar," she said. "He was not at Durmstrang; and I have not really met anyone outside of those I knew from Durmstrang, and those who are now my colleagues here. Should I know him?"

"Only if he has been a lover of yours," said the Enquêteur.

Desolina burned red and looked as though she was about to burst into tears.

"But I have never had a lover; I do not feel old enough for marriage," she said.

"What of extra-marital lovers?" persisted the Enquêteur.

Desolina slapped his face and treated him to some very unflattering Italian.

"She said you are a pervert, whose filthy mind, reared in the gutter, has evidently never known nice girls as you plainly are a man-whore whose disgusting predilections should not be permitted near schoolchildren," said Olympe, who had rather enjoyed the measured cadences that were second nature to a trained chanter.

"I apologise, Mademoiselle," the Enquêteur bowed. "I do indeed meet many low minded people in my profession. You will permit me perhaps to ask professional questions about ritual magic?"

"Why?" said Desolina, bluntly.

"Because two men have been cursed with… well, most intimate curses, which have taken effect while nobody was in the room but themselves," said the Enquêteur.

"It is possible, of course," said Desolina. "I have, myself, used Finnish naming magic when our school was invaded last year to place exploding maggot filled pustules on the Russian supremacist leader, though he was in another room. And one may send a spell with the use of chanting. It is a risky business; any competent wizard who is the recipient should be aware that he is open to ritual and be able to counter. Lord Arkadi Wotsitov wasn't competent, however. Supremacists rarely are. Didn't either of these men feel who was doing it?"

"One is not educated, the other I think entirely unaware of ritual," said the Enquêteur. "How difficult would it be to affect two body parts on two people simultaneously?"

"Moderately," said Desolina. "That is to say, beyond the scope of the ELF exam. I shouldn't be surprised if any one fourteen year old in Snape's school could do it, but then, they train in ritual from an early age, and appreciate its dangers too. Who are these fellows?"

"A quidditch player and his, er, lover," said the Enquêteur, getting ready to duck if she had not heard of alternative forms of love.

"Oh, a quidditch player," said Desolina. "Has it occurred to you that some quidditch players are such prima donnas that if a man on another team even thought he had been cobbed he might even pay for a professional curse-maker to do it? Just because it would inconvenience the man and his boyfriend. There are some terribly childish personalities out there, we often had professional teams to play the school team, and on the occasions we won, some of them acted like spoilt babies who asked for a flying horse for their birthday and got a broom. And may I ask WHY you might have come to Beauxbatons to seek who may have done this? You are surely not accusing the pupils? Other people than students are capable of the puerile."

"He has known one of the other teachers," said the Enquêteur.

"Oh!" said Desolina. "When did this take place?"

"Last night, at about twenty-two o'clock," said the Enquêteur.

"Well, we were all, including Olympe, sitting in the staffroom while I taught the staff how to make Swiss fondue," said Desolina. "It was a most convivial evening; nobody was missing, even M. Cuilliere, who is something of a loner. He teaches Potions of course. But he wanted to oversee my mistreatment of his best cauldron."

"He ate more than anyone else of it as well, despite moaning," said Olympe. "I cannot think that my staff can help you further, monsieur. And of course, the town is out of bounds to the youngsters; none of our children would dream of going there."

"No, of course not," said the Enquêteur with heavy irony; he knew fine well that sundry older boys visited illicit prostitutes and night life, but he could not prove it. Why, the headmistress was almost as naïve as her virginal and frozen chanting Professor!

There was nothing more to find here; and doubtless the answer would prove to be as Mademoiselle Uccello had suggested, some prima donna of a quidditch player who could afford to hire some renegade wizard capable of such acts.

He bowed, and smiled, and left.

Homère went to see Pharamond.

"Pharamond my boy, that was beautifully done!" he said, hugging Pharamond and kissing him on both cheeks. This being affection not romance, Pharamond accepted it.

"M. Tisserand, of course, I can have no idea what you mean," said Pharamond.

"Of course not, of course not!" said Homère. "Dear me, I have never laughed so much in my life! I am quite cured of my infatuation; but totally!"

"I am glad, sir," said Pharamond.

Hopefully M. Tisserand's love life might be stable with Ithier: and if not, well there was only the rest of the year to go, trying to boost the volatile history professor.

oOoOo

"Philomène," said Amelie Lafée, "Is it true that the Enquêteur was looking for someone who did a ritual sending against someone?"

"It is," said Philomène, "And if I were you, it is something not to be gossiped about. It's a technical assault."

"Does that mean we can't do one to Achille Villeneuve?" asked Candide Catogen.

"I didn't say that," said Philomène. "Are you then confident that you are capable?"

"No, but we thought you might be," said Chantelle Lebrun.

"We were talking it over with the other Champagne Marauders too," said Amelie, "and those of us who were wand-burned by Antoinette were horrified on her behalf when she wrote us apologies and told us that Achille had been inside her head making her feel what he wanted her to feel. Uggh! And we wanted to do him a bad turn to show her there's no ill feelings, and then write and tell her."

"Well it seems like a good idea to me," said Philomène, "except that we need a ritual link to Achille as we don't know him, and we don't have one."

Three faces fell.

"Not at all?" said Candide, disappointed. "WHAT a shame I burned his picture in the propaganda leaflets that were sent out."

"Maybe someone else has not; it is a start, and might work….MELUSINE'S TAIL!" she yelled.

"You had an idea?" asked Amelie, politely, after jumping.

"That fellow… Clarembaut Rénébreux….when he was taken away, what became of his trunk?"

"Well how should we know?" asked Candide, reasonably.

"We don't, but I bet the elves do," said Philomène, heading for the kitchens.

oOo

"The unpleasant one's trunk and all his things are in the attic, little mistress," squeaked the elf Philomène had asked. "He has not sent for it, so it is still there, with the other trunks of the Terminale class. Why does little mistress want to know?"

"Just in case there are any plans he had written that would allow Le Roi Soleil more power," said Philomène. "He would try to have the self-punishing curse put back, you know."

"If you can do anythings to stop the sun king, all the elveses will do what they can to help," squeaked the elf.

"Well, I don't know about stopping him, yet, but we can certainly irritate him," said Philomène.

The elf cackled with laughter.

Four young girls ran all the way up to the attic. Finding Clarembaut's trunk was an easy matter, and then it was a question of unlocking spells and searching.

Clarembaut may have had plans to replace Achille one day, but even so he had not been able to resist keeping a brief note penned in the sort of flamboyant style generally used by the likes of Marauders, Malfoys and megalomaniacs; though Philomène regarded it critically and raised an eyebrow at some of the tell-tale backward slants that suggested that Achille was not so self confident as he might like people to think – even if he did not, himself, realise it.

"Do you know how to do it?" asked Chantelle.

"Yes," said Philomène, who had taken note of what Pharamond had done.

"What are we going to do to him?" asked Amelie. "Wand-burn him?"

"I'm not sure I'm capable," said Philomène, honestly. "I was thinking though, maybe we could do something that happens near him… fire or something?"

"Doxies?" suggested Amelie.

"Magical creatures are dead hard to summon," said Philomène, reluctant to knock the child down, but knowing that most people accounted magical creatures impossible to summon.

"A swarm of hornets?" suggested Candida. "Hornets are always mad at everyone, it would be likely several at least would sting him."

"And if he does know ritual, as the spell is not aimed at him as such, he might not notice until it's too late," said Philomène. "Anyone with him will just have to take their chances. Unless he has prisoners, they're likely to be baddies anyway."

Arithmancy was called for, and the design of a chant, and as Clarembaut was almost a ritual component in himself, they decided to do it up there, sitting on his trunk.

"Is that it?" said Amelie, disappointed, when they had finished.

"It is for us," said Philomène.

"But don't we get to know what happens?" asked Chantelle.

"It is, I fear, the nature of ritual sendings that you can only ever get the slightest of touches on what happens," said Philomène. "You did feel the hornets arrive?"

"I thought so," said Candida, "but I wasn't sure."

"Well, that's ritual magic for you; you don't know if it's worked unless you hear word from another source," said Philomène.

The younger girls were disappointed.

At least, thought Philomène, it meant they were unlikely to try experimenting on their own and pick on someone hard enough to ground their own spell back through them.

It would have been nice to have known, though.

oOo

The conspirators were in luck.

A column well towards the back of '_Sorciere et Chaudron'_, the French social magazine, reported coyly,

_A source close to le Roi Soleil tells us that the handsome young sun king will not be attending any social events until such time as the hornet stings on his face have been cured and it is restored to beauty. Achille was disturbed in his country chateau by an incursion of a huge swarm of these beasts, and was badly stung. Malevolent sources have not been ruled out, though as yet the means to introduce them has not been uncovered._

"Well, I suppose if he is as stupid as Darryl reckons, ritual magic might well be beyond his understanding," said Philomène in satisfaction.

It was a good day; for the Marauders of Beauxbatons, or really, specifically the four oldest, since they had received an owl from Darryl Zabini, letting them know that the school he and Mimi had set up in Paris for goblins and the poor was going very well, and that perhaps by the next Triwizard would be ready to compete too!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"Why is it that goblins can't sing?" demanded Amos Leroy.

The goblin he said this to happened to be Zenz Breuer, the youngest Breuer child in the school at the moment, and being Zenz, he took no offence but translated the question as it was intended, as a desire for information.

"I think our voice boxes are built slightly differently," he said. "We can chant fine well, once trained, but when we sing we're even more gravelly than Clovis Fortembras, which is going some."

Amos shuddered.

"His trumpet playing is sublime, I don't know why people listen to his singing," he said.

"Because he sings from his heart, Mr Leroy, and you know he means every word," said Zenz. "It's not much point having a pure voice and expensive training if the listener knows you're just doing it as a job, and that you don't have meaning in what you sing, because if you don't have an emotional response to a singer, then it might as well be noise."

Amos stared.

"Young man, that is a very profound statement; and now I know why music never satisfied me, even though I craved it with all my heart. The songs that were written for my Voice – and it was always spoken of as though said with a capital 'V' – were clever, and highlighted my range, but to be honest I never understood half of what I was singing, so I could not project true emotion. No wonder the other children at Hogwarts laughed at me! I will never, I think, forgive my Aunt for exploiting my talent, and making me into a little monster."

"Severus always says that there'd be nothing wrong with any children if they didn't have problem parents," said Zenz. "He approves of my parents; they support our interests and don't try to force our talents, whilst taking an interest in them."

"You use his first name?" Amos raised an eyebrow.

"We live up here and knock around with his kids in the holidays," said Zenz, "so out of school he's by way of being a spare uncle, but I would not like to think of what he might do to anyone adding an 'uncle' to his name, would you?"

Amos shuddered.

"I can't say I would think his reaction would be in any wise pleased," he said. "So you take music and magic for granted?"

"Not quite for granted, but I'm used to it," said Zenz. "I can whistle tunefully enough and can lay in an enchantment with it. And I like listening to the people who can do it properly."

"I wish I could write music," said Amos. "It's one of the things I'm hoping to learn here."

"Will you be waxy if I repeat stuff I've heard?" said Zenz, warily.

"No, I don't think so," said Amos.

"Well, I've heard the musical people say that if writing tunes in your head doesn't come as naturally as breathing, you're never going to be more than an adequate second-line crafter," said Zenz, "Although if this Aunt of yours made you sing pappy sort of shit that made your voice make her look good, there's a chance your true musical ability was stifled in being an abused child. Like Silvina, before Severus adopted her, who was punished for making music."

Amos gasped.

"That's dark wizardry!" he declared.

Zenz grinned. "You're playing on the same stave as Sev there, Mr Leroy. I think they had to restrain him from turning Silvina's real parents inside out, and from almost any other wizard but Severus Snape, that would be a cliché. They're weirdos."

"Apparently," said Amos. "You may as well call me Amos; Mr Leroy makes me feel old."

"If you like, Amos," said Zenz. "I reckon if you've had an abused childhood you'll learn as much about being normalish from us as you will music in magic, and maybe it will release an ability to make music."

"I'd love to," said Amos, with yearning.

"Siegfried is musical, and I've heard him say that you're supposed to jot down every little theme, however small, when you have it, and one day you'll use it," said Zenz. "I'm better at eavesdropping than at music."

"I think a lot of small boys are," said Amos, "though I never got much opportunity. I was watched most of the time to protect me. Looking back I had a most abnormal childhood."

"Ghastly!" agreed Zenz. "Well, you can have fun here, and if you tell Severus, I reckon he'll be tolerant if you want to act like you're thirteen again for a while to grab a bit of childhood before you have to put it aside and go out into the world. Even he can do it sometimes; my older siblings and their friends overdid the japes so he pranked the whole school with singing toilets and fireworks. I'm told it was a beautiful thing to hear and behold."

"Merlin's bedsocks!" said Amos, who found it hard to imagine the stern Severus Snape pranking anyone!

oOo

Severus listened to Amos stumbling through an explanation of his childhood, and handed him hot chocolate with marshmallow sprinkles.

"Have you discussed this at all with the Quaestor who was your guardian?" he asked.

Amos shook his head.

"Somehow he was more a jailor than a parent figure, though he did help me realise a lot of why I wasn't normal, I suppose."

"He's owed your thanks for that, then," said Severus. "You poor little boy. Maybe if I'd still been at Hogwarts I might have managed to help you sooner, before that excess of poor prunery landed you up expelled and in deep trouble; but then you weren't in my house, and I'm not sure Flitters would have much liked me putting my big feet in."

"Flitters – you know his nickname? - could have taken me in hand if he'd chosen to do so instead of standing back and observing," said Amos, bitterly.

"Ravenclaw; what do you expect?" said Severus. "Come in three types, do Ravers. One, the divas, who expect worship, and if they are lucky get their corners knocked off to get over themselves to be ordinary geniuses; two, those who observe without acting, save perhaps to see what happens if they poke things; and three, those who actively seek truth. The third are the shining stars of Ravenclaw house."

Amos flushed.

"And I was the first," he said. "You don't much like Ravenclaws."

"It was a Ravenclaw diva who very nearly killed my daughter Lilith by sending her to the evanesco place," said Severus, quietly. "Equally, it was her Ravenclaw boyfriend who volunteered to go and find her, because the ties between them were, and are, profound. I don't like many people very much, Amos, and there are flaws in all the houses, as there are strengths. It just helps if the house heads are those noted for the strengths, not the weaknesses. I have nothing against Professor Flitwick as a person; I admire his competence. Lilith is fond of him. But I think a more proactive Ravenclaw head of house would help to keep its, shall we say, more volatile elements in check. I believe, towards the end of my tenure as house head, I learned to use the strengths of Slytherin House to help its pupils, but I am very much aware of my failures when I was first in charge there. I was callow, bitter, frightened of my double role as a spy against Voldemort, and I had several chips on my half-breed shoulders. I got over it… but not without help from my dear wife Krait, and Harry Potter and friends. Sometimes you need a hand up."

Amos nodded.

"Yes, I see," he said. "I have a lot to learn about being Amos Leroy as well as about music. Would you be offended if I stayed more than one year?"

"Not at all," said Severus. "The post graduate class is about learning more than school can teach, and sometimes that's about learning more about yourself. You might want to get to know Mafalda Prewett better too; she has dreadful parents, and her ambition is to take over the Corbin academy. You might find a fulfilling career teaching there, where you can also find peace and quiet to compose, if it does come to you, or to practise, and use as a base if you return to singing in public. I manage to create new potions between teaching and fighting dark wizards; I find indulging in such hobbies help my muse of potioneering, which is an art as much as music is," he added.

Amos laughed.

"There can't be many wizards able to claim fighting dark wizards as a hobby," he said.

"Oh, I shouldn't miss it if they decided to give up," said Severus, "But while they want to be a pain, I'll carry on opposing them. It's about wanting to look one-up on others, but not having the patience to work on being a rounded character when there are short cuts that seem to be apparent, like the Dark Arts, and they do not bother to learn the counters which help them avoid its snares. So Ravenclawish."

"That was a lesson for me, too, wasn't it?" said Amos. "Don't take short cuts, learn even the boring stuff because it counts."

"It does," said Severus. "You'll do, my boy."

oOo

The theatrically minded, now in the fourth, were feeling their oats, especially in light of the year without school Quidditch other than internal knock-about matches. As two of the class, Georgi Metlaev and Germaine Oglethorpe were extremely talented, and William Weasley was as good as any Weasley, they felt it greatly, and even those of the class who did not enjoy quidditch, Solange Lebatons and Birgitta Guttman, were sympathetic, comparing it to being deprived of music and dance respectively.

Quidditch training with Viktor Krumm had not ceased, since Quidditch was a skill treated as one of the special talents to be trained, like music or art, but the habit of playing professional teams had been temporarily put on abeyance, and no inter-school matches were to be played.

Georgi therefore turned to his other talent, as a playwright, and proceeded to write a musical about the Beautiful Game, which was to be the title of the piece, in which Quidditch players defeat awful odds to be the champions of their country, whilst rescuing maidens, defeating rampaging dragons and other unnecessary but amusing additions. Severus, looking in on the early rehearsals, declared that it looked like Pirates of Penzance on brooms, and left them to it.

The class was only twelve strong, and had to rope in other quidditch players, as two of their class fell off brooms, and acquired Liriope Hallow, Zoë Gestler and Sylvana Nachtigall from the class above them, the quidditch mad in an otherwise rather horsy class, and Lydia Grant, the quidditch prodigy from a family of quidditch prodigies, in the class below. The top quidditch players would play the team, which Georgi found challenging, being used to directing, not acting.

"It'll do you good to have to act, though," said Siegfried Snape Von Eiche. "When you write music it's a good idea to have to play it in public to make sure it's not too clever and handles well, and though you're a jolly good playwright, it won't do you any harm to be on the other side of the boards as it were."

"Probably right, old boy," said Georgi. The non-English pupils delighted in using language culled from 1920s school stories.

This meant that the major action was around the three class stars, and the four they had brought in, and the other nine in the class filled all the other roles, which as Birgitta pointed out was jolly good.

"We're used to jumping to your direction, Georgi, so we are ready and happy to take more than one role without getting confused by it. Most of us had three characters last year, so we can easily deal with being a helpless maiden, a ministry official and one-ninth of a dragon."

Georgi grinned. The dragon was a rather ambitious project, brought on by the success of the efreet the year before.

"I say we do the ruddy dragon with shadow puppets in the traditional manner," said Conrad Grailsquest, the form puppeteer. "And I'll handle the lot of it; you only need me flying on opposing teams after all."

This was true enough, and made a lot of sense, so Georgi gave in, and sent Conrad and the artistic Werner Wasner to design and build the best shadow dragon ever, which had Werner, who was also very good at metalwork, going into a reverie about a moving light source, based on the design of one of the wizarding wireless vision cameras to draw back or move forward on a programmed design, with manual override just in case, to make the dragon seem to grow in size as it came forward. These two boys probably enjoyed themselves more than the rest put together. Especially when Werner suggested that they make the dragon out of fine metal rather than cardboard, for a more durable and hence more flexible figure.

Solange, who was moderately musical, was co-opted to be the team nurse, and was to sing songs about all the quidditch injuries possible. Georgi tentatively asked Amos Leroy for help in coaching the singers as he had not the time, and Amos was actually delighted.

The score, as usual, was to be crafted largely by Silvina, with help from anyone else with ideas, and Amos marvelled at how the highly talented children bickered gently, and crafted pieces made up of the ideas of more than one, without demanding that their piece was the greatest. In Ravenclaw house, children of such talent would be jealously guarding their own work, he reflected. And that was why Severus Snape could handle a school full of children who would, any one of them, be quite capable of handling being Ravenclaws; because they were all of them expected to share and work together, not one of them permitted to be divas, because all of them had their talents.

Equally, the school artists joined in to paint the scenery, and Sarah Elliot was given a two-fingered cuff from several people when she added to the quidditch stadium a randomly-appearing streaker who bore a distinct resemblance to Zyrillis from Durmstrang.

They left him in though, because it was funny, and was far enough back that most people would not notice anyway, and Sarah said that streakers were almost traditional at muggle games venues.

Georgi also permitted Bertha Jorkins, who was friendly with Lydia, Reaz Breuer and Gabiden Kim all of the third to be extras, since they were keen enough, and were friendly with their two class artists who were helping with the scenery. This involved all the third except the Ubiquitous Marauders, who declared themselves ready to mill about as crowds if need be, but that as the Bee Too Marauders in the fifth were now too elderly to pull japes, and the fourth year had no Marauders at all, it behoved them to entertain the school in other ways.

Georgi nodded cheerfully; the Ubiquitous Marauders had been instrumental in the success of the last year's performance in having managed to produce a liquid portkey to bring in the efreet onto Professor Ron's clockwork earthquake. None of the children actually bothered to consider that brewing a liquid portkey was one of the things that would gain considerable points in the Triwizard; it was just something that was fun.

oOo

"What are we going to do this term?" asked Fyra.

"I don't know, but it wouldn't half be fun to do something the White Snakes think is difficult," said Zhenga.

"Bet that leaves us a lot of scope," said Bruno. "They seemed pretty hopeless, well apart from Mischa."

"Well that's why he's Great Snake, you prune," said Zhenga.

"And if we can figure out some of the things they have as great mysteries, we can present them to him, and he can look even better," said Wilhelm. "Politics counts in an organisation like that; he has to continually prove himself better, especially as he's had dissidents."

"He's been listening to Eduard again," grinned Serrik.

"Well, the only person who knows more about politics than Eduard Von Frettchen is Lucius Malfoy," said Zhenga. "And by the way, in the meantime, shall we practise wand-writing runes and see if we can't do knotwork the same way? We might not be good at drawing like Paul and Jöran, but we ought to be able to manage pattern magic by rigidly applied time and effort."

"It's what being a Marauder is about," agreed Alrik, and the others nodded. Besides, there was that spark of rivalry with the Musical Marauders in Durmstrang, whose speciality was music, but who also seemed to be specialising in pattern magic. This was something they could not be permitted to get away with, if the Ubiquitous Marauders could manage to catch up.

Consequently they all joined the voluntary art class and beamed at Erica Malfoy-Chang to inform her that they needed to learn pattern magic.

Erica was used to the vagaries of Marauders and told them to stay out from under feet of the serious artists and if they worked hard enough she would permit them to take the OWL in due course. They beamed at her, and settled down to read the text book.

Translating theory to practice was another matter of course; but none of them were dire, and Erica, looking over their work, declared that any one of them could learn to be an adequate, if not inspired artist.

Artists being rare, and it being an employable skill as a teacher, the Marauders actually decided to give it their best shot. It might even be worth missing a prank this term, because it would be very useful in the long term!

They all, of course, worked extra hard on ropework gates, and kept one just for visiting Great Snake Mihail Vasylovich Solvejov, otherwise known to them as Mischa, and considered an honourary member of their group. This was breaking bounds in a rather greater way than slipping down to the village, but Severus, discovering the rope circle when he went looking to find out why life was suspiciously quiet, figured that at least he knew where they were; and as Mihail sent him a polite note confirming this, he wrote back giving the Great Snake permission to entertain sundry of the third as and when he desired.

Mihail had accepted a life-debt from Zhenga, and Severus knew that seeing her from time to time would help the strain that such could engender.

He then had them all on the carpet in his office when they returned, and read chapter and verse of the riot act regarding children being out of the castle in case of a fire and other people risking life and limb to look for them, fruitlessly.

The girls were reduced to tears and the boys were not far off.

"I don't forbid the visits," said Severus, more gently, "but I do require you to report to me before you go, or at least to a senior Marauder as you may feel the need when I'm out of the castle. Be sensible!"

"Thank you, sir," said Zhenga, tremulously. She, too, felt the pull of the life-debt.

Severus ruffled her effulgent locks affectionately.

"Now you know why breaking bounds is forbidden," he said. "But so long as you are known to be in the Ukraine half your free time, we shan't be looking for you elsewhere."

They left his office wiser, and voted him just the best headmaster ever.

oOo

The first real Marauder excitement of the term was, in the event, executed by the Questing Marauders, though the results of their actions were not what they had initially intended.

It was CuHH's fault; everyone agreed to that. One could not blame Grace Hubble, even though the initial idea had been hers.

There had been much complaining about the loss of socks – which was rather a Hubble disease – in the form generally, and Grace, who was, outside of potions, quite an efficient little body, suggested summoning all socks into a summoning circle and animating them to get into pairs and find their proper owners.

This was voted a great idea.

"I know how to do this," said CuHH, which was the moment at which the others should have shouted him down, as their best enchanters were Rence and Boleslav and CuHH had difficulty with Arithmancy almost to the extent of needing to check how many fingers he had.

The socks assembled into the circle in a pile, rose in some degree of bilateral symmetry, since some of the socks were in pairs, and proceeded to advance menacingly on the children.

As the sock monster was quite eight feet high, they fled incontinently, feet flapping in shoes, since CuHH had inadvertently summoned all the socks in the castle, not merely the lost ones.

It was Flo who rescued them, confunded the sock monster, and sent all paired socks to where they were supposed to be, surpassing herself to return them to the feet from whence they came.

The reduced sock monster looked rather pathetic, so Flo took pity on it, and re-animated it. Magical schools were supposed to gain rather odd denizens, anyway. And as the sock monster chased Spassmacher the poltergeist, the rest of the school voted it a jolly good thing, even if a trifle disruptive on its own account at times.

CuHH lay low.

The rest of the school whose socks had disappeared and then reappeared may have been appeased by being re-hosed, but CuHH had a strong suspicion that he would take a long time to live it down if the rest of his group shared his part in it.

oOo

The first year Marauders were not much further forward in working out a ritual to discommode Dolkhov. They had some good idea how to send a corridor curse, but somehow, as Radagas said, it seemed unlikely that this would prove enough against a grown-up, especially a fully fledged dark wizard.

They decided to ask Yrdl for some advice.

Yrdl listened and sat down rather weakly.

"Well, I'm glad you came to me, you kids," she said.

"Do you know how to do it, sis?" asked Zenz.

"I know enough about it to know that any one of my lot of Marauders would hesitate on our own to do anything other than the sort of nuisance level corridor curse that he might not notice too much," said Yrdl. "Dark wizards tend to over-react rather; and though we were part of comprehensively cursing him, he was aware, and he was fighting against the transformations, and half of us were blocking the curses he was throwing back at us; because one is wide open when making a sending. Chanting means you can build it up and be open for a fraction of the time, but he was nearly competent enough to seize that window of opportunity. We didn't burn right up or get blasted into smithereens because there were plenty of us, all of whom are rather competent at building protections. I'd not have liked to have been working against him alone. My lot could probably handle him but he'd kill you babes without knowing or caring that you're only children."

"I knew it was risky but he looks so foolish that we didn't think he was that good," said Radagas.

"He isn't very good, which is why he'd over-react to a sloppy connection with something like a blasting curse," said Yrdl. "The Musical Marauders used something complex and musical to make his farts glow. We chanted, which enabled us to put up layers of protection within it, and some of the group concentrated on maintaining that. You might be able to curse him, but I fear your lack of experience would not let you see and counter what he sent back. By the standards of Severus, he's a rank amateur. Wait until you're in the second, when maybe, with advice, you may have learned enough to deal with one of his calibre."

"And when we're all blooded to draw on the rest of you for protection if need be, you mean," said Radagas.

"That too," said Yrdl. "And you and Rainer had better explain that comment to the others. I can't fault you on your industry, you kids, but pick a less dangerous target. Russian wizards have an appreciation of ritual that has been lost in Western Europe, where your skills would surpass most."

"Are you saying he's harder than Voldemort?" asked Ambrose, sceptically.

"No; just that his knowledge base is different," said Yrdl. "If Harry Potter had studied runes, or if Hermione Granger had realised what power she had at her fingertips with the runes she learned, and was a practical japester not a theorist, they could have turned his wand against them, a missed opportunity. Severus has put his back into learning more and more about chanting and ritual, which makes him probably the greatest expert on earth, and us at Prince Peak more knowledgeable than most people. But though Dolokhov is nothing like as powerful or as clever as Voldemort, he has the specific knowledge to counter something that is our advantage over many. If you MUST do a sending, work out where he is going to sit and drop a curse on the chair ahead of time so when he sits down something amusing happens."

The first year would-be marauders cheered up no end over this, and thanked Yrdl.

Then Radagas and Rainer had to explain the comments about blooding, which Zenz and Vetrik had something of an idea about, from having siblings, and when Falk looked dubious, Rainer pointed out that his brother Ritter was a part of it.

Falk did not even ask him if he was sure; Rainer was his friend, and Falk had been reared in the old school way that true friends don't even stretch the truth. Being a part of something his big brother sanctioned was all right with him.

"It sure is beyond anything I might have expected, but my parents would want me to go for anything that helps EEquality," said Ambrose. They giggled at his pronunciation of equality of course.

"If you are blood-joined to us goblins and Ekki as an elf, you will understand more how we feel, which will help you fight for rights without putting your big Yankee hooves in it," said Radagas.

Ambrose may not have learned as many spells as some, but his parents had equipped him to deal with any duel he might fall into, and Radagas had to stop his fingernails quacking so loudly nobody could hear themselves think. The honour of America was satisfied.

"And Dolokhov really does have hooves," chuckled Zenz. "What shall we do to his chair?"

"Make it play the 'Star-Spangled Banner' because he'd hate it," said Radagas.

"He probably wouldn't recognise it," said Falk. "I wouldn't; your folks know more about Muggles and other countries than most."

"'Colonel Bogey in time-honoured tradition or 'Popcorn' then?" said Zenz.

They opted for 'Popcorn' because they could add the sounds of half-coconuts to the staccato music like clopping hooves, just because it rubbed it in.

Ambrose added to this by suggesting that the sending also included wand writing above the chair saying 'the person sitting in me is an idiot'.

This was modified under discussion to the single word 'idiot' and a big arrow. In English and Cyrillics.

They then had to find a dictionary to tell them that the word for idiot in Russion was 'durak' and what it ought to look like.

All that remained was the Waffling logic, a piece of Arithmancy generally encountered at NEWT level, but something they had come across in general research, so that the chair was activated when a weight was place on it, and the person sitting on it had hooves.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"I know from my brother that Marauders are supposed to pull japes that are fun for all the school, harm nobody, and encourage them to learn more than others in their class," said Briht gan Schenik to her set.

"And sort out bullies and wrong ideas," said Nîn gan Gautic.

"My sponsor was not a Marauder long enough to do this, but if it will help us learn more and to fight darkness, it must be good," said Mirami gan Ash.

"I have read some stories of schools, the English 'Cassie' series," volunteered Madelgarde Reinheit, "And Lelli has read them too, they are in German if anyone would like to borrow them."

"That's awfully generous of you," said Alith gan Sidar. "Thank you. Do they give ideas?"

"Ye…es, but they are also about the situations Cassie and her friends find themselves in; like the time she shuts the Potions Master in a cupboard because she thinks he's a dark wizard invading the school. I wouldn't like to guess how much Ukrainian we might learn if we did that," Madelgarde giggled.

The other little girls also giggled at the thought. Professor Rebet could be a little crusty.

"They are, too, about what is 'done' and what is 'not done'," squeaked Lelli. "It is 'not done' to play jokes on servants, or play jokes which involve servants. It is also 'not done' to do anything that might seriously frighten anyone, so making horrible banshee noises with comb and paper must only be aimed at seniors."

"And that, presumably, has been done already," said Briht. "I say, could we collect bottles, and use hovering charms to angle them into the wind so they sing? It's a good way to practice hovering charms, 'cos I for one am excruciatingly bad at it."

"You are, rather," said Lelli. Briht's cup had first refused to shift at all, and had then lifted with such a jerk it had clouted Professor Kesselring on the nose going up, and as Briht had lost control of it shortly after, had landed on his head going down under the effect of more gravity than wand control.

The collection of glass bottles of varying size was going to take a little planning, but as some of the staff drank wine, and all the children drank milk, it was not too difficult to extract the bottles from where they were awaiting collection to be recycled, after having been washed by the castle elves.

They were not, after all, disrespecting the elves by stealing the bottles to put any nefarious potions in, in which case washing dirty ones would have been more honourable, because once used, they could be put back. And Lelli resolved to keep half her concentration on Briht's bottle, to make sure that it did not crash into the courtyard and cause a danger to anyone who might cut themselves on it.

The group decided to aim their noises at the staff bedrooms, as the staff ought to have grown out of being scared of random noises; and proceeded to break lights-out.

"What are you up to?" demanded Tesha gan Goor, of the three leaving her dormitory.

"Trouble," said Briht.

"What are you doing?" asked Elvlith gan Urric, who sounded genuinely interested.

"Marauding jape," said Nîn. "You weren't so sure you wanted to Maraud, so go back to sleep."

"Well, I might change my mind," said Elvlith. "My sister Yrmiot Marauds, and my sister Saeyth would if only she wasn't afflicted with Mildh, who whines at her. It must be awful to be a twin."

"Or great if you both feel the same way," said Briht. "Well, you can come along if you like, and if you don't enjoy it, you don't have to join."

Elvlith jumped out of bed and pulled on her slippers and dressing gown.

"You're insane, you'll catch your deaths of cold and get into trouble," said Tesha. They ignored her.

They explained to Elvlith what they were doing on the way, and they had brought extra bottles in case some worked better than others, and Elvlith had no more trouble with hovering charms than any.

The other dormitory had to contend with Linda Fledermaus, who told them that Doom would fall upon them. Linda, a half goblin, was moderately talented at Divination and boasted of having visions. She received a rapid vision of having her quilt pulled right up over her head by Mirami, who had little time for visionaries.

"You might tell us what it is that your group does things like this for," said Clotie gan Gunth, a buck-toothed child with solemn eyes.

"I have heard it said they practise to fight the sort of people my parents fled from," said Zorica Dubhev, a half-blood human, whose heritance was a death sentence in her native Russia for both her muggle mother and her 'blood traitor' father.

"Well if you wanted to come, get a move on," said Madelgarde.

The incipient Marauders had increased by half as much again, and from a slightly arithmantically dodgy six had grown to an auspicious nine.

The bottles however refused to sing, until Lelli gave a squeak of annoyance, and managed to summon a breeze from her wand, a piece of extrinsic conjuration that was not usually in the natural repertoire of elves. But then, elves did not usually have the use of wands in their previous state, and Lelli was having great fun finding out how much else she could do.

Once the breeze was available, the bottles sang most beautifully, and several windows banged open in irritation or surprise with gratifying promptitude. They were rewarded by the odd scrap of comment between the married staff members along the lines of,

"…too musical for wolves…."

"… some kind of musical attack perhaps…"

"…must be the wind in something hollow, is the lightning conductor capped?"

And the Head's voice, under _sonorous,_

"Go back to bed everyone, it's some of our pests being pestiferous. And the pests are included in the instruction to go back to bed. You can write up what you did and present it at breakfast tomorrow."

The Marauders giggled and went back to bed. Their write-up was necessarily rather scruffy, but the Head seemed capable of deciphering it.

He raised an eyebrow.

"And did you manage the hovering charm, Fraulein gan Schenik?"

"Yes, sir," said Briht, earnestly.

"Then you have gained from the jape. You will all go to bed one hour early this evening to make up for your lost bedtime. Dismissed!"

It could, they felt, have landed them in hotter water than that; and as they were overtired, the early bedtime was actually no hardship.

oOo

Wilga had not looked forward to fagging for Biirta, but her duties were far from onerous. Biirta required her to brew coffee and toast crumpets and invited Wilga to join her in partaking them. Wilga was nothing loath, and Biirta chatted aimlessly, as it appeared, and soon Wilga was chatting away about the brothel, and how glad she was to be a pure bred goblin who was well off, as being half bred meant you risked your family selling you to a brothel as soon as you were old enough to work. Her father, Heran, it seemed, did not deal in very young children but seemed to consider that thirteen was quite old enough.

"So you could be starting there next year, then?" asked Biirta, conversationally.

Wilga shook her head.

"No, I shan't; didn't you hear what I said? I'm well off and full blood, and besides, Pa wouldn't make ME."

"Oh, so if you had a sister, if he had fooled around with a part goblin girl, it would be all right for her to be working at a year older than you?" asked Biirta. Wilga looked a little uncertain.

"Well, she'd only be a whore's child, wouldn't she? So it's her destiny," she said.

"I bet you're thankful your parents were married," said Biirta, with heavy irony, pulling a mental face that it wasn't going in.

"Yes, haven't I said so?" said Wilga.

"You wouldn't feel sorry for a sister of yours who was a part-breed?" asked Biirta.

"Why should I?" asked Wilga. "Nothing to do with me."

Biirta gave up for the time being, and sought out Wulf, later.

"What does one do in the face of such recalcitrant self-centredness?" she asked.

"There is, alas, not a lot that one can do," said Wulf.

"If only one might place her in a situation where she thinks her mother was only say three-quarters goblin," sighed Biirta. "I would consider busting a gut to send her a vivid dream if I could only be sure it was not unethical."

"I am fairly convinced that it is most unethical," said Wulf, dryly, "which would probably not stop your Lucius from doing it, if he felt it served a greater purpose; sometimes he sails perilously close to 'The Greater Good' in his choices."

"I think you can only make choices like that if it does not really hurt anyone and increases the general good of others," said Biirta. "The other kids mostly ignore her, so they don't care one way or another, I personally think she'd be a happier child if she were less selfish, but destroying her relationship with her father, which it could do, would be a drastic sort of way to make her think more of others."

"She is quite a racist child in her own way, I hope that school may get through to her," said Wulf. "She is only in the second year; with luck we have time to mould her. But I cannot stay silent about her implied suggestions that there are children in that brothel; I have to contact the Vehmgerichten in Aachen to tell them to investigate."

"Huh," said Biirta, "Draco and Harry would hit the sky as they summoned their brooms for that information, but do the Vehmgerichten actually care when it's goblins and half goblins involved?"

"I don't know. We shall find out," said Wulf.

oOo

Wulf received very little encouragement from the law in Aachen; without putting it in as many words, it was made clear that nobody cared about goblin, and especially half-goblin brats.

Wulf sighed. He and Jade would have to do this themselves; and put the fear of something into Heran not to restock his brothel with youngsters. He proceeded to floo a selection of stable families to ask them if they would foster any little girls rescued from a brothel who might need a lot of help, and who would certainly not be ready for school this year, and received pledges of support from the parents of Kristel Kirsch, Kasimir Wieslkind, and Friedrich Spinnertanz in the upper sixth, and from those of Herman Mayer, Jurgen Lötze, Ervig gan Sabac and Safraxa gan Beric in the lower sixth, once he had assured these less well off parents that he would sponsor the children and pay for their keep. If there were more than seven in one place, he could worry about that later.

He and Jade proceeded to Aachen with threats in mind.

Both disliked Heran on sight; he was, as Jade later described him, what they had in mind when the adjective 'sleazy' was invented.

Heran blustered a lot, and Jade used legilimensy. She was not gentle, and the goblin pimp was left shaken and terrified. Jade decided that the best way to gain his co-operation was to show him his personal boggart.

His shrieks might have created some interest in what was going on, if shrieks and a brothel were not synonymous.

"It'll come back if you even think about using any more underage girls," said Jade. "I'm sure you'll become an absolute model of a pimp, taking real good care of the girls you run, or else we might come back."

"I'll take my kid out of your rotten school!" howled Heran.

"Do; she's a most unpleasant child," said Wulf. "I wouldn't miss her. Of course, she's the loser, and so are you if you were hoping that she would grow up to provide you with magical security, as she won't then earn the right to carry a wand, but why would I care?"

Heran glowered at him sullenly. Put like that, there was little choice; the chances for goblins to gain education were very limited.

"I won't forget this in a hurry," he said.

"Good," said Jade. "You should remember it well. I didn't kill Gerhardt for third-rate dictators like you to think you can throw your weight around in your very small pools."

They had four frightened and hurt little girls to place; and the two who were sisters, who were one quarter goblin, should go to the Kirsch family, who already had two daughters one each side of the sisters in age, and the other two, who looked more goblin, should go one each to Sabac and Beric in Kobboldsheim. This was quickly accomplished, and a joy to see welcoming arms around children who needed to learn that cuddles were for love, not for sex.

Wilga would not love them for following up her careless talk, and doubtless she would not love Biirta either, but then, she had scarcely been a fan to start off with.

oOo

Ulvik and his friends were surprised to be summoned to see the head, as they had not actually even plotted anything yet.

Ulvik explained this.

"I'm sorry, sir, but whatever it is, I'm afraid we haven't been creative yet."

Wulf smiled.

"It's Marauder business," he said. "So help yourselves to cocoa and cakes, and make yourselves comfortable."

There were cushions on the floor; accommodating a big group of ten was a little awkward otherwise.

They disposed themselves and looked eager.

Wulf smiled, wryly.

"The problems are, er, many headed and mutable, I fear," he said. "And they are all confidential."

"We don't blab, sir," said Mava.

"No, my dear, I know you don't; I just want you to know that it is top secret so as not to accidentally blurt anything out. First, and the most immediate problem is Wilga gan Heran," and he outlined Wilga's background. He went on, "And Jade and I have rescued four very young prostitutes, two of whom are housed with the Kirsch family, so there is the chance that Kornelia may blurt something out in front of Wilga. I need you people to sit on anything that arises out of that and keep it low key."

"Wilga might not come to any harm being on the receiving end for a change," said Ebert, who had received his fair share of being asked how come a three quarter goblin thought himself as good as other people.

"No, but she might equally try to bully the girls when they do come to school as they'll likely be in classes below their chronological age," said Wulf. "That's to be sat on too. However, they won't come in before next September, to give Frau Kirsch a chance to get them settled, happy, and caught up. And Kornelia is a Marauder who I know will help them, but Kornelia is also quite likely to give Wilga a harder time than the child perhaps deserves. It's very complex, and spoilt and racist as she is, Wilga is an abused child too in many respects, for knowing too much."

"We'll try to keep on top of it," promised Ulvik, "and we'll keep our ears out for what may be said in the meantime."

"Good," said Wulf. "The more immediate matter will be after Yule, when two new pupils join your class. One, a boy, Zsombor Czerny, was expelled from Durmstrang for being a little monster."

"They don't lightly expel from Durmstrang," said Klemens.

"No, but Agata Bacso is also not the world's most tolerant of people," said Wulf, "and he was bullying her son's half brother. There were reasons; not merely a brain imbalance which made him unable to empathise, muggles call it psychopathy, but also a rather awful family. The same family to whom Zaly Czerny belongs.

"Ah," said Ulvik.

"Quite so. He's Zaly's cousin. Kreacher Black has adopted him, he has been in a dire sort of orphanage which in its way was worse than the Berlin one - Kreacher is organising its takeover – where he had learned a few rough lessons, and also managed to make a friend, a half-goblin girl called Irenke, now surnamed Black, who took care of him, and has been adopted also by Kreacher. Kreacher says that the boy is learning to be civilised, and that he and Irenke are both fond of horses and riding, so we may use that to nurture the good in him."

"And basically we are to look out for them and help?" said Berthold. "I can talk horses."

Wulf beamed on him.

"That should help a great deal," he said. "Zsombor is also good at Arithmancy and Transfigurations, which should stand him in good stead. Kreacher is not sure if he will ever learn enough to aspire to Maraud, but he hopes so. And you will need to check them out; if Zsombor cannot manage to, then Irenke should not be invited either at this time, as she is his anchor."

They all nodded solemnly. Though Zaly and Grelleg were older Marauders, and Biirta was blooded, they felt it very seriously that they were the First Eagle Marauders and the founders of the movement in the school. These were serious tasks to undertake.

oOo

Ihor Rebet was wont to say that he preferred teaching at the free school because at least the majority of his scholars were keen, and not snobbish about it. However keenness did not always overcome total ineptitude and the first week in October went down in the annals of the school history as the week of potion disasters.

It opened with the second year, who had one potions genius in the person of Polina Balyzama, who was in fact sponsored by Ihor, along with her older sister. The rest of the class were generally described by Ihor with an eloquent shudder.

Milly gan Reschar was one of the class disasters, and though determined to succeed, sometimes overdid the determination; and she managed to burst her puffer-fish eyes with over-zealous stirring when making the swelling solution.

The cauldron promptly seethed horribly, and Milly had the presence of mind to jump back as it exploded.

This might not have been so disastrous had not she been working next to Polina, whose potion was proceeding perfectly, until hit by Milly's exploding cauldron, whereupon the entire dungeon was sprayed with swelling solution… and whatever Milly had made. As the dungeon itself began swelling inwards, Ihor called for a rapid evacuation of partially swollen children before they were engulfed and squashed by the swelling walls.

What was going through Florenzia Spinnertanz's mind when she fired a shrinking charm at the walls she could not later explain, except that as a Marauder she thought she ought to do something. Florenzia's charms were no worse than anyone else's, but her potioneering was quite as bad as Milly's, and without full understanding of what she was doing, the charm reacted very badly with the swelling walls which shrank back in places and then began exploding.

The class fled ignominiously at this point.

Ihor retired swollen to his store room to at least provide the class, and himself, with Deflating Draught. He waited for the effects to largely wear off the dungeon before borrowing some of the better chanters in the school to restore order. One of the walls refused to respond to any cure, and thereafter a foot radius area of it would swell to a blister over about a week before collapsing back on itself with a horrid popping noise. Jade declared that it would sort itself out over the next year or so, so Ihor tried to ignore it in the meantime.

The fourth were the next class to have an exciting time in the Potions dungeon; none of them were dire, even Florenzia's twin sisters, but only Higith could be described as any good. Her friend Hegi, and Nuta, the Polish girl, were above average. Vinz and Delfine were in need of watching, and Ihor had a particular eye on both of them when the class were working on skin preparation creams.

He was watching the wrong cauldrons.

Nuta gan Kolaz, who always had the eye out to the main chance, was seeing golden visions of selling skin preparations as a nice, easy living, and unfortunately decided to experiment.

The resultant excess left her cauldron overflowing; and as most people had the presence of mind to leap onto chairs, or were heaved up by their fellows, the only damage was to the floor, which came out in a nasty attack of acne.

It only remained for Ria gan Naldo in the third to shrink her cauldron with the shrinking solution in it, and the week of potions disasters was complete. The resultant overflow did at least largely cure the floor's acne.

The first subsequently thought they had got off lightly by being told that their forgetfulness potions were in need of being forgotten as rapidly as possible. Much Ukrainian of a less than polite nature had been learned that week.

oOo

Nuta was much embarrassed about her cauldron failure, and it was unfortunate that she overheard the first year would-be marauders giggling about a floor covered in acne.

"Well you kids are going to need more than beauty preparations to look anything but awful," Nuta raged. "Especially that one – teeth like a rabbit, uglier than a German pure-bred hausfrau!"

"You aren't any more beautiful than any of us, yourself," retorted Madelgarde.

"Huh, at least I have long elegant fingers and a decent nose, not stubbly little things and a snub of a nose like you ugly humans," said Nuta. "And an elf trying to look like a schoolchild; ridiculous! Outsized head and stupid little body, and the goblins amongst you tousled and dishevelled, more like boys, even those of you who don't look like rabbits – or ferrets!"

The aspiring Marauders were, to be fair, somewhat dishevelled and covered in cobwebs, as they had been looking, so far unsuccessfully, for secret passages. However, Nuta could not long compare her own pristine appearance with theirs since she was very rapidly covered if not with cobwebs at least with spider legs, and Briht managed to invent a spell on the fly 'doxylocks' in which Nuta's beautifully kept hair was tangled into what muggles call elf-locks which Mirami managed to transfigure the ends of to more spiderlegs.

They retired in some triumph.

"It's true, though, I do look like a ferret," said Clotie, sadly.

"Library work," said Nîn.

They discovered the curse '_densaugeo_' which made teeth grow, and hastily committed it to memory in case Nuta caused more trouble, and as a group, being moderately good at Ancient Runes, were able to disentangle the Latin of this to being a growth or augmentation of the teeth.

"So we need something like '_densdiminudo'_ said Zorica.

"Shouldn't it be '_densreductio'_?" asked Nîn.

"Dictionary," said Madelgarde.

Dictionary work turned up '_densredigo'_ being the correct form of the verb to reduce; and by mutual consent they left it to Lelli to perform, as elves were very good at charms.

"And if we all did it at once, they might disappear entirely and that would not be good," said Madelgarde.

"Not that we'd really noticed before that big girl made an issue of it," said Briht, "but if we can sort out something that makes one of us uncomfortable, we shall."

Lelli concentrated, and Clotie gasped a little to feel the pull on her teeth, and all the others clustered round to peer.

"Nice work, Lelli," said Alith.

"Someone show me a mirror!" demanded Clotie.

Being eleven year olds, none of them carried mirrors with them, leaving that for the incomprehensible vanities of the big ones; so they ran off to the nearest toilets, and Clotie admired her new teeth while the rest howled with mirth, pointing and giggling at the smuts and cobwebs they had all picked up. Since they knew no grooming spells that any of them could remember, they cleaned up the conventional way and were able to go to supper looking almost suspiciously pluperfect, since they wanted to show Nuta up.

Nuta had been unable to free herself from the jinxes, though she had managed to reduce the number of spider legs. Her involvement with the ECC was desultory, as she rather preferred her bed to yet more school work. She might have been released from durance spidery had she managed to ask the others in her class nicely for aid, but as she had stormed into the fourth year common room demanding that someone do something about it, and sort out those rotten kids, it may be said that all her classmates managed to be overcome by sudden diplomatic deafness.

"Did we ought to help her?" whispered Valerie Müller.

"Val, even if you wanted to, you can't transfigure your way out of a paper bag," said Valerie's friend Renate. "If she's irritated the little ones that much, she should have thought before speaking. Besides, I didn't hear any words of courtesy, did you?"

"Nuta," said Wanda, "Were you not missing the odd word from your, er, demands for help?"

Nuta stared.

"No, what?" she said.

"Most people try 'please will you help me'" said Wanda, mildly.

"Oh, now you've got a rich granddaddy, I suppose you expect all us goblins to kowtow to you and plead for your help grovelling," sneered Nuta, who was in a fine old rage.

"No, I expect, as I have always expected, common courtesy from one person to another," said Wanda.

Her goblin friends politely applauded.

"You've got teabags in your divination cup, Nuta" said Higith.

"Oh you and Hegi may suck up to the humans, but I won't," said Nuta.

"I ain't seen no sucking up," said Vinz gan Doric, lazily, "Except from you when you think it'll get you something. Go to the Head Girl; she's supposed to disentangle silly brats who piss off marauders."

Nuta chose to take herself to find Gauda, having convinced herself that a refusal to help her was all about humans trying to put goblins down; and did so by marching into the Upper Sixth common room and approaching Gauda with a blunt,

"I need help".

Gauda promptly told her to get the hell out of a private common room, have the courtesy to knock, and then try to find a few manners in the way she asked.

The result was not a whole lot better, but Gauda decided to accept it. The girl DID need help. And when Gauda got to the bottom of why Nuta was in such a state, the fourth-year girl received a dressing down for having got at the babes for their appearance, especially with the addition of sundry unwarranted personal comments. Nuta had been stupid enough to mention that the 'brat who looks like a ferret' had been one laughing at her, and Gauda had discovered by careful questioning that it had been the state of the floor they were laughing at, not Nuta personally.

Having torn Nuta off a strip for making personal remarks in a silly and childish retaliation to something that was not meant personally, she ruthlessly dejinxed Nuta and set her lines for speaking out of turn.

"And you'd have had it hotter from any of the staff who heard you come perilously close to racism," said Gauda, referring to Nuta's whines about the lack of co-operation of her own class. "Demanding help without so much as a please is very offputting."

Nuta retired somewhat chastened, but still sore; however she was not about to cross Gauda, who had dealt with dark magic the previous year, and who was therefore to be somewhat feared.

Any ill turn she could do her own classmates or the first, however, Nuta vowed she would do.

It may be said that the aspiring marauders were disappointed to see Nuta back to her neat self at supper; but then, one could not have everything.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The tube of hands had been extended out of the oubliette, which anyone who knew elf-style apparation could reach easily enough, though it was impossible for anyone else to access unless engulfed, gated, portkeyed or otherwise subjected to an excess of Marauding Arithmancy. Halloween was a Saturday, and it seemed a shame to disrupt a day generally given over to merriment with extra merriment, so the Weird Marauders decided to put in as much time as they could to getting it ready for the weekend before. Of course if they caught a particularly stuffy professor, this might mean being banned the Halloween party, but this was held to be a risk that had to be taken.

"And Auntie Connie is about the starchiest, really," said Niobe.

"How you Slytherin girls get away with calling Madam Hardbroom 'Auntie Connie' I have never been able to fathom," said Hasibul, with feeling, still smarting under a returned essay on antidotes which was more red corrective ink than essay.

"Perhaps because we don't absently call Golapott 'Guzunderpot'1 in our essays and have some idea of his first law regarding antidotes," said Niobe, who was far from good at potioneering herself, and did her best to make up for it with hard work. Madam Hardbroom had been very kind to her when it had transpired that she had been cursed by her wicked uncle. Niobe subsequently retrieved her ears with the ease of long practice. She had come a long way from the tearful and difficult child who had been set up to be a bone of contention in the heart of her own family, with the cursed dolly.

"I say, Niobe," said Chrys Lockhart, "I just thought, it really IS right for us to use the oubliette; the Belle Marauders did set it up to engulf your Uncle Buckley, after all!"

"It's a good omen," said Niobe, "and we'd get further with it if Haz didn't bellyache about Auntie Connie."

Hasibul was left gasping at this unfairness, but being one of the better members of the group with regards to Charms and Enchantments soon found himself too busy to complain. They were going to have to work hard together to transfigure a pair of doorposts into Telamones, since as a group they were no better than average at Transfiguration. This was something they fought to overcome, since Marauders traditionally picked some kind of Transfigurational solution. And it was the last component to include.

Madam McGonagall would have sighed over how they could make heavy weather of a simple transformation and yet made light of a piece of extrinsic translocation by precision implied in both the appearance of a sweetie and the Waffling logic required in the turning of it into a portkey by the act of eating it. The Weird Marauders had decided to make a liquid portkey as the easiest way of enchanting their sweeties, and had injected them all with the same. When enough chocolate melted for the portkey liquid to touch the tongue, it activated. Zajala was later heard to grumble that the little menaces took for granted what she was having to learn.

oOo

Lilith, meanwhile, was struggling in Divination with Lecanomancy, or bowl-reading, which she sighed was at least better than Lycanthropomancy and fondling the guts of a fat werewolf, with or without _paté de foie grasse_, or even _paté de loup gras_, which was more likely what the old seers were after.

She earned a Look for that from Madam Spikenard. Lilith was the only one of her class who was taking Divination, since it was no longer required by the less academic as a soft option, even had Madam Spikenard permitted this, because of the Special Sixth and its training in practical skills. Lilith bent to her bowl of water again and gasped, and swayed.

Madam Spikenard was there in an instant; Lilith was not a child to make a pretence at a vision in any case, and the little girl had gone quite white.

She turned to Madam Spikenard with big purple horrified eyes.

"That Russian git is going to Vanish someone at the next contest," she said, in revulsion.

"Have you any idea whom?" asked Madam Spikenard.

"It isn't someone I know, so no, not really," said Lilith. "Well! I can warn everyone and I can stand in readiness to go. I'd better teach Adam the anchor spell."

"Lilith, my dear," said Madam Spikenard, "I hesitate to bruise your Marauding spirit, but sometimes, just sometimes, the responsibility for hitting the air reaching for the broom is the responsibility of other people. And I sense that this is one where you are a spectator."

"That's going to be harder than going," said Lilith, in a sick little voice. "Because I know what they'll be facing."

"And thanks to you, so do they," said Madam Spikenard. "What, do you think I didn't know you went back? It was the only thing someone as academic as you could possibly do, of course; though I warrant your poor father was not happy."

Lilith giggled.

"He had conniptions."

"Well, I might have done so over one of my grandchildren," said Rosemary Spikenard dryly, and hoped fervently that Lilith would not point out that she would have every right to do so, since none of them even approached Lilith in ability. Lilith was too polite, however, whatever she may have felt.

"Well, at least I can write it up as an actual real seer thingy," she said, soberly, "and keep my eyes out, and spread it about."

Rosemary Spikenard smiled and resisted the temptation to hug and kiss the little girl, who for all her talent still referred to a vision as 'an actual seer thingy' feeling the idea of having visions was just a little bit shameful.

oOo

As it happened it was Rosemary Spikenard who was the Weird Marauders' first victim. She nearly avoided the jape as instinct told her it would be a bumpy ride; but she decided to endure any bumpy ride in the pleasure of seeing the cleverer minds in the school at work. The ride was surprisingly smooth under the circumstances, and Madam Spikenard recommended it to Professors Vector and Flitwick as delightful examples of their craft.

It may be said that Professor Flitwick rode the jape a second time, and proceeded to let David know about it.

By the time David Fraser had arrived to partake of his chocolate cauldron, a significant number of Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff houses had been oublietted, and David found Emma MacMillan sobbing in the oubliette.

"Emma, what's wrong?" asked David crisply.

"Oh sir! Have you come to rescue me?" asked Emma, worshipfully. "I don't know how I came to be here! But there's no way out, and I can't get up to climb up again!"

"Just as well, there's no way out that way," said David. "Why haven't you eaten the sweetie?"

"I was afraid it might be poisoned and make me sleep for a hundred years," said Emma.

"Emma, do use your brain from time to time," said David. "Madam Hardbroom may well poison you next year to check your potions knowledge, but have you ever known the Marauders to pull a really nasty jape?"

"Is it a Marauder jape?" asked Emma, doubtfully. "I thought it was dark magic!"

"If providing chocolate cauldrons with liquid portkeys in them was the limit of dark magic, there'd be no aurors," said David. "Just eat the sweetie. If you don't move on, this place is going to get very cramped as…." He jumped back as three giggling Gryffindor girls arrived, "….as people arrive."

Emma obediently, if dubiously, ate the sweet, and David waited for the next one to appear.

"You three will have to take turns to extricate yourselves," he said, hastily eating the chocolate cauldron as it turned up.

It was really very competent. And Emma was still in the passageway, looking about surprised.

"You see? They return you to where you were going," said David, kindly, "and feed you chocolate to make up for the surprise."

"I really do not understand Marauders at all," said Emma, "They do the oddest things."

David decided not to try to explain the principle of having fun. It would probably be lost on Emma.

As it appeared that only one child had been frightened by the jape, and most considered it a good laugh, there was no need to call down discipline on the heads of the perpetrators. At least, since the one child was Emma Macmillan, who got herself into a state about things that most people hardly noticed. Poor child, that she was incapable of taking life with anything but deadly earnestness, but really, if she could not learn to grow a thicker skin, her parents should consider removing her from school and getting her a governess.

David duly mentioned the oubliette at Dinner and suggested that enough was enough and perhaps the clever practitioners would care to write it up for him.

"We're going to have to take it down anyway, sir; we're running out of chocolate cauldrons," said Seth. "And some of the greedy pigs went through more than once."

"Dear me, Mr Dumbledore, I fear I am guilty," squeaked little Flitwick, "though I assure you it was only in the spirit of enjoyment of the very competent magic!"

Seth felt his face grow hot.

"Please, sir, we are happy for any of the staff to have as many sweeties as they like, it's only when certain greedy pigs in the third, and he knows who he is, went through it six times that we got irritable. And I hope he has a gut-ache for all the extra chocolate and its additions of portkey stuff."

"Mr Higgs may report to me for a stomach settler if he needs it," said Connie Hardbroom, who was under no illusions which child was referred to.

oOo

The two major 'gangs' amongst the Upper Sixth encompassed most of the year, with notable gaps in House Ravenclaw, and a failure to be universally joined in House Hufflepuff. Since Nigel Baddock had joined the Society Against Slavery, invited by its founder, Roger Blake, on the grounds that the slavery of one's own body chemicals was about as nasty as slavery got, all Slytherin were at least approximate adherents to that, or to the other gang. The other gang was largely those who agreed in principle with both the SAS and the Marauders without wanting to be actively involved. This encompassed the quieter elements, like Oliver Prince and Damian Malfoy in Gryffindor, not names usually associated with quieter elements, Cassius Prince and Martha Bones in Hufflepuff, Pericles Bullivant in Slytherin, and sundry other hangers on who would probably claim affiliation if push came to shove; which is to say if anyone pushed or shoved them. The only two activists in Ravenclaw were Wendy Waffling, who had Marauding siblings, and her friend Mesmadora Turpin, and they were members of the SAS. The joiners tended to be those with initiative, and it was they who were the main movers in planning a Halloween party for the younger members of the school, and diverting the sillier older children from taking too seriously any of the dippy sorts of ways it was supposed to be possible to divine one's future lover. As all the prefects were involved in the planning, Zajala had to rapidly sit on Lilith's ideas which included giving the dippiest girls visions of Trurk with a well aimed illusion.

"Poor Trurk!" said Zajala. "What have you against him?"

Lilith giggled.

"Can't you imagine their faces though?" she said.

"Yes, but it's a bit unkind," said Zajala. "It's not as though most people take it seriously."

"Well, I should rather say not," said Lilith, "not when there are more reliable methods of divining than by slinging apple peel over your shoulder, brushing your hair in front of a mirror while eating an apple – yuk, hairs in one's apple! – or jumping over candlesticks to see how many happy months you have, or naming nuts and putting them on a shovel in a fire after naming them for friends to see how the friendship endures. Muggles have some 'strordinary ideas, and some witches – and wizards – are just too dippy if they take them up."

She came up for air.

"Well, I know, and it's just a bit of fun, even if there are dangers of setting fire to oneself and so on," said Zajala. "Keeping it low key is best, surely, and not letting anyone talk themselves into believing it too much, like a bunch of superstitious muggles."

"Yes, but as one can't really ban them, disrupting them seemed the best alternative," said Lilith. "And actually I'd say some of those who can divine their way out of a teacup on a good day, with the wind behind them, do sort of open themselves up with mirrors, because it would act like Lecomancy."

"I neither know nor care what that is; it sounds like a perversion," said Zajala.

"Divining by a surface of water in a bowl," said Rosemary Spikenard. "And she's right, I can see either Lavender or Hazel getting unwanted, and indeed unwonted, visions on All Soul's Eve, and I do think it might be a good idea to ban it. The Bodes are at risk too, and I reckon Lilith knows enough to not like the idea."

"I don't like the idea at all," said Lilith, fervently, "which was why I thought judicious illusions might be enough to stop them peering too closely and getting too involved."

"That puts it in a different light, our kid," said Zajala. "You have these hunches from time to time."

"Yes, and having had a vision once this term, I say give me hunches any time; they're less horribly scary," said Lilith, with feeling. "I will see Divination all the way through to NEWT but it's occurred to me why Malfoys don't take it."

"Why's that, Halfpint?" asked Sextus, taking her hand.

"Because we get hunches that it's not comfortable to do," said Lilith.

Enough Malfoys had been known to have enough hunches that the other prefects digested this in respectful silence. Lilith had a point.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Halfpint?" said Sextus.

"Of course I am; we're the most cynical people in the school with the greatest knowledge of the Dark Arts," said Lilith.

This was likely enough to be true; and none of the other prefects bothered to dispute it.

"Head boy's hat on here, and suggesting you enlighten the less cynical of us," said Kevin Slugworthy.

"Well," said Lilith, "Knowing that Russians do value ritual, and being aware that David Fraser reckons that Russians are very good plotters, even if they usually blow it for not being good at working together, and assuming that they can read books about Halloween customs in the west…"

"Get on with it," said Jingjie.

There was a pause while the pumpkin formerly know as Jingjie Chang was rescued from its persistent vegetative state by Wanda Waffling.

"As I was saying," said Lilith, severely, "Because there's a few ifs, buts and ands in the matter, if I was a Russian supremacist, I'd try to do a Voldemort and take over the soul of some dippy moo and appear as her lover, and make her go on a goblin-killing spree."

There was a long silence.

"All right, it merited the build up," conceded Jingjie.

"She's like her mother when in lecture mode," said Sextus, cheerfully. "But that was the way my thoughts were running too, so it's not that someone has put a farting curse on her brain."

"That's reserved for my sisters," said Rosemary, grimly. "And with judicious flattery, either one of them would be WIDE open. What do we do? We can't guarantee that none of the silly articles won't do the ritual on their own."

"Obvious," said Nathan. "We do a massive chant and curse ALL the mirrors in the castle that aren't otherwise enchanted to not reflect for a twenty four hour period. We can't mess with the head's foe mirror of course, or certain scrying mirrors of which some of us wot, and by the way, I'm going to pop to Durmstrang to warn Agata; Lils, you warn your dad, and someone better warn Jade too."

"I'll get dad to," said Lilith, disappearing. Nathan disappeared right after her.

"I do wish that certain people would at least maintain the illusion that the castle is a non-apparating zone," said Kevin, mildly.

He decided to call upon those who chanted seriously to put together the requisite chant, and took the conclusions to the Headmaster.

Kevin listened in awe as David Fraser swore comprehensively in several languages, not all of them in daily use at any point in the previous millennium or so.

"Lilith has a habit of being right," said David, grimly, "And being who she is, she has a few insights the rest of us are naïve enough to lack. I'm not about to say she's wrong; I'll explain to the staff why no mirrors are going to be working, and put a blanket ban on that form of divining, with a… toned down explanation. Some kids scare easily and it could put them off ever looking in a mirror again."

"Emma MacMillan you mean," said Kevin, glumly. "The child is a twazzock."

"The unfortunate little girl has parents who are twazzocks, and you didn't hear it from me," said David. Kevin grinned. It was nice being head boy; the responsibilities were heavy, but the Head treated you almost like a member of staff.

David summoned cups and poured tea.

"The Russian mindset is to be good at plotting," he said, "and as well as being good plotters, they are dedicated terrorists, and terminally inefficient because they are secretive about enough things that they don't actually share enough to co-operate, and yet are inclined to boast about such things that should be kept secret."

"That was kind of what Lilith said; I think she was quoting you," said Kevin.

"I've been known to hold forth on the subject," said David. "And they like things that are ridiculously complex. It fits the psyche. I think I'll invite myself to the chant."

"That would, I'm sure, make everyone feel much happier, sir," said Kevin.

oOo

The chant duly went ahead, and the castle mirrors would remain sullenly rusty red for the duration of October the thirty first and the first two hours of November the first, just to be on the safe side. When asked why rusty red, which was Lilith's insistence, she blinked in surprise and said,

"But that's the colour of the backs of mirrors of course."

Which, being so, was a non-sequiteur.

Lilith's instincts were never to be doubted.

David made an announcement on the Friday evening.

"I know some people like to play at divination games with mirrors and sundry muggle ritual as part of Halloween, but this year, that game has been banned. It has come to the attention of the faculty that there may be a dark wizard at large who is capable of manifesting in a mirror held by the unwary and possessing her mind. Mr Scarpin, I heard you say, 'if she has one', I shall have a sonnet on the subject of 'thought' from you by bedtime if you please. The danger is under investigation, but as a precaution, and for the duration of the risky time of Samhain, no mirrors in the castle will function. You should do any necessary repairs to your appearance before midnight tonight, and will have to do without, or use the services of a friend to help you, until Sunday. This is nothing to be concerned about, and the mirrors will resume normal service when the danger period has passed."

The concept of Samhain being a dangerous time was quite accepted by the school as a whole, along with Imbolc, Beltane and Lughnasadh and the Solstices. Wild magics sometimes accompanied the old festivals. Even Emma MacMillan seemed to accept this ukase on the use of reflections with equanimity, and as the chant had covered any summoned mirror too, those stupid enough to think themselves immune were also protected. David remembered the trouble caused to Krait by the possession of the Greengrasse girls by Voldemort, and that was only really for a spying mission. A walking agent to kill goblins was a far worse proposition.

oOo

The parties for the junior and senior schools went off without incident and, though the older girls grumbled a little that Halloween was a bit flat without divination games, as the Prefects decided to organise them so ruthlessly, there was no time for such shenanigans. They were given word games to solve and a number of quizzes, rather than the more childish pursuits of bobbing for apples, making toffee for toffee apples and tilting at an apple quintain that the younger ones were organised into. The older ones did roast chestnuts, without naming them, and both groups had partaken of traditional Halloween dishes like apple and medlar pie, roast buttered pumpkin, hog roast, toad in the hole, tomato and pumpkin soup and so on. Parkin of course was also served, a firework night food for muggles but suitable enough for Samhain as well. Andy Gardiner was provided with a birthday cake by the elves, who thought it was cool for anyone to manage to be born on Samhain. Julian Bode promptly had a vision and informed Andy that the Child of Samhain was protected from Necromancy by right of birth. Julian got all flustered, and Andy invited him over to the Ravenclaw table to eat cake and recover, because when one is the subject of a vision, it rather overshadows one's normal habit of keeping to oneself. The food went down well, and was followed by a sing-song while it was digested, and then after the youngest had retired to bed.

To divert older minds from pursuits of divination, the prefects had laid on a small wizarding band for dancing, and pointed it in the direction of being more of a disco than a ball. David thought it a good way for them to let of steam, and having two left feet was unimportant with disco dancing, even though most of the wizarding children who were not exposed to muggles were finding it hard to get the hang of it. Absently he broke up Sextus and Nathan trying to introduce a mosh pit, as moshing had no part in a wizarding school, any more than had singing 'let the bodies hit the floor' in a lull in the music. Sometimes the Marauders could be a little difficult.

The Marauders were also feeling their oats a little because there was to be a Blooding at midnight; and those youngsters who were to be involved were probably awake and giggling, to the detriment of their well-being instead of quietly going to sleep until an alarm spell woke them, like the well-trained and biddable children of Prince Peak. It was the difference between English children and Continental ones, and seemed to make little difference in the calibre of the Marauders.

Of course it did help that in Prince Peak most of the staff were Marauders, so any tender consciences about it not being right to Maraud were soothed, whereas the English Marauders would go ahead, full speed ahead and damn the torpedos as one might say, regardless of whether their actions were officially semi-sanctioned or not. It was why they had won against Voldemort, and why the European schools had needed a bit of poking to fight the likes of Gerhardt. Sometimes one could have too much obedience.

The disco broke up at around eleven, which was considered quite late enough for growing youngsters in wizarding circles. Muggles might permit their older youngsters to party until the small hours but then, some things muggles did were incomprehensible, even to someone muggle born who had spent more than half his life as a wizard.

And then it was away to Myrtle's loo, still used for ceremonies as the Marauding Room was too snug; and the Hunting Marauders were being brought in blindfold by Salazar and his group.

Teddy Lupin, Rose Gaunt-Moody and Richard Snape were already blooded, but were excitedly looking forward to feeling their blood sing with the others of their group: Varjak Malfoy-Tobak, the youngest of Tobak's children; Lucy Prince, another of those sired by the inadequate Crassus Prince; Njorjala gan Jorg, otherwise known as Jala, or Jar-Jar gan Binks; Habbuk Kordach, the first of Kordach's kin to Maraud, and the goblin businessman's heir; Drogo Malfoy; and Glasbhinn Green, one of the free fey associated with Malfoy manor.

And then the time was right, and palms were split, and the wonderment on the faces of the new ones was always so moving, as they realised that they had friendship beyond kinship, love beyond life, and that many of them had siblings with whom they now had a so much closer relationship.

And just because they had had a feast did not mean that pumpkin juice, butterbeer and parkin was not much appreciated.

oOo

After Halloween, of course, the business of the Yule ball tended to rear its ugly head, though at least with the compulsory Saturday dancing classes having been instituted for several years now, the idea of dancing held no particular fears. Those who were poor were making over secondhand robes under the strict supervision of the junior members of the Society for Marginalised Women, and dressing such of their menfolk for whom they felt enough affection. Lilith had sewn robes for herself and Sextus in a shot silk of dark purple shot with green, matching thereby both their eyes, and shifting colour mysteriously; and Zajala hid a sigh to make over Nigel Baddock's sad and out of date gown. Not that the Baddocks were poor, but Nigel was not a favourite son.

The Weird Marauders were to attend this year, and Walter Crabbe, now transferred to the Pepperingye Marauders, asked Niobe Cooper if she would be his partner. Niobe, who had outgrown her crush on Chrys Lockhart, blushed and accepted.

Chrys, meanwhile, was threatening to scrag whoever it was had ratted him up to the Daily Prophet with regards to attending the Ball this year, leading to the headline, "Chrysogon Rufus is having a ball!"

Seth asked Lavazka, Hasibul asked Purnima so they could speak Hindi, and Chrys declared that he would take both Veronica and Yulan.

The Marauders being sorted they sat back to point and giggle at the rest.

Both Malfoy-Tobak twins were going with the gan Nork twins, which appeared to be a possible case for both couples; and as the rest were heavy on girls, the Weird Marauders cheerfully suggested to the boys of the Third that they should hold out for bribes.

The Stripy Marauders were glad of the addition of Adam, as it meant only one of the girls had to go with a non-Marauder, which as Adam asked Jayashree, for being in his house, was Venus, as Gennar and Kazrael were partners of habit. Venus firmly picked Gareth Rookwood who was almost Marauder material; because things could change and he was in the habit of doing what Lilith suggested almost as if he was one of their set.

Even the Upper Sixth still had their problems; Zajala now had Nigel, and was happily floating through a growing romance, and Ludmilla Yaxley and Damian Malfoy had been an item for as long as anyone could recall, if only because they deserved each other's dangerous pets, as Danzo gan Tokar snidely put it. He was going with Jabala gan Kordach, child of one of Kordach's mistresses, and an old friend.

Kevin decided to take the bull by the horns to ask Storm; though her cousin Zephyra was the prettier of the two, Kevin was more attracted to Storm's academic hard work. Both were staunch and loyal supporters of Narcissa Malfoy's organisation, and Kevin approved. Cassius Prince was still going steady with Genevieve Harris. All else was subject to change, and David decided to copy a ploy of Darryl Zabini's, and chant in an antihysteria line to keep things a little calmer.

That way some of the more volatile spirits might make it to Yule without disrupting the rest!

1 Guzunder [goes under] and pot [pronounced po] are old slang terms for chamberpots. A small boy's choice of interpretation rather than a gallipot, a vessel for storing potions and lotions.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Without the distraction of quidditch even, Nedelya Grgica was feeling even more the lack of riding. Like a goodly number of her year, she was a useful little quidditch player, without being likely to ever play professionally, but she hoped one day to get a German Quiddpolo league going. In the meantime, and missing her horses, Nedelya harangued her friends into backing her in her hobby, and a notice in colour-changing ink appeared in the main hall. The notice invited anyone who was interested to a Halloween equestrian meet, every contestant to enchant their own steed. The Defending Marauders had to pool pocket money and ask the Musical Marauders to purchase prizes for them, as fourth years were permitted into the village and second years were not, but this was no problem. It was, as Sigismund said, what shops like Zusüss und Widerlich were for, selling sweeties as prizes.

Nedelya's main ally in her horsy endeavours was not actually one of the other Marauders of her year, but Valda Schutzstab, who was rather horsy herself, which she admitted to, now that she had opened up to the Marauders. With the aid of elf magic from Wennie, who was enthusiastic about helping the kind Marauders, who helped teach her lessons, they worked on setting up a course outside for low-flying 'horses'.

"It's more suited to a gymkhana for moppets of six, of course," said Nedelya, critically, surveying some of the obstacles, "but we have to assume very few people will manage much enchantment capable of carrying them over anything higher than about three metres, like a fat little pony."

"I'd doubt some people could even manage that," said Valda. "I'll be struggling, and I'm a lot more capable than Arluin Kuelin, who is the only one of our fellows likely to have a go."

"I'm hoping that the Musical Marauders will at least rise to the challenge," said Nedelya. "I'm sure Wennie will help you, and so will I. Can we legitimately compete?"

"Wennie will help Fraulein Valda!" squeaked Wennie, eagerly. She was not fond of horses herself; they were rather big, and she was tiny.

"Perhaps one of the big ones would referee it," said Valda, wistfully.

"We'll ask Frau Von Freyer; she grew up around horses," said Nedelya. "And… and Fraulein Nachtigall, and Herr Carcano."

"Do you think they'll do it?" asked Valda, doubtfully. Her experience of teachers, especially Cacilia Von Freyer, had not been good to date.

"Of course they will; they're all good sorts," said Nedelya, airily. "Oh, you're thinking how much you hacked off Professor Von Freyer by spouting back the rubbish your father taught you about potions being low, because he was too stupid to manage more than a grey sludge for anything, well, she knows you were labouring under some false assumptions, so she'll forgive."

"I hope so," said Valda. She hated Potions, but as a rather competent Arithmancer had heard the Marauders on the subject of the subtle arts, Arithmancy, Potions and Chanting, backed up with Runes, and was consequently working harder. Her attempts had been noticed, though not entirely in a good way by Volodya Potishev. Volodya despaired of getting the girl to understand how to hold any kind of rhythm in chanting, and when she had protested a ban from his class as chanting was a subtle art had softened. He told her that she might borrow the books on art in magic and use his period to study that as another subtle alternative as a teacher was coming in the following year to teach it as an elective and from scratch. Valda had been grateful, and the Musical Marauders had gladly let her use their books and notes. They were looking forward to the arrival of Herr Slugworthy, and had negotiated borrowing him in the long summer holidays to stay with the Von Freyers to make sure they started their ZP year well up to speed. Valda found herself fairly adept at art, and as Wennie found chanting embarrassing with her noticeable squeaky elf voice, her little friend was happy to join her in these studies. As Valda was currently without a parent, she was included in the invitation to stay with the Von Freyers, and was very grateful.

Cacilia, Katharina and Orlando were quite flattered to be asked to be judges, and ruled that if the originators of the course were to be allowed to compete, then anyone else competing must be permitted practice on the course too, to make it fair.

Nedelya and Valda were happy with this, and issued permission to play with their course in the run-up to the competition.

Sigismund and Lindhard had both discovered themselves to be rather good at riding whilst staying with Cacilia's parents, a revelation for boys who were not of the class who considered horses an essential. Accordingly, they intended to use their topiary horses from the maze, but they had no intent of showing these steeds off by practising in front of others. Instead they walked the course, and looked thoughtful.

The rule regarding the surrogate steeds was that they were to bear at least some resemblance to horses and brooms were not permitted as it was cheating to use something already enchanted professionally to fly.

"I say, if any of us younger ones want to try, we haven't learned enough enchanting yet," Klarisza Toth protested.

"I'm sure a Marauder could come up with a solution," said Nedelya, calmly. "Library work; or at least use a hovering charm for each jump."

A hovering charm was far too tame, and some at least of the first years retired to the library.

Ilarion was no horseman, but just for fun he thought he would compete, and went and talked long and hard to the feral desk on fowl's legs, which necessitated a little bit of carpentry to facilitate, and a promise to leave the enchantments in place if the desk permitted the said carpentry. The feral desk could see other possibilities with the modifications in place, and agreed. Ilarion then had the task of persuading Saxdred, the goblin handyman, to permit him to use tools and to get him some hinges.

Saxdred liked the Marauders, who were polite to him, and even called him 'sir', which was unbelievably flattering from junker class children, and he warned Jungherr Ilarion to be careful, but provided what was necessary. Ilarion was careful to sing a song of soothing as he performed surgery on the desk, as well as being careful not to hurt himself, and soon he and the desk were conspicuous by their absence as they went to practice.

It has to be said that most efforts in the junior school at least involved a version of the hobby horse, a pole with a horse-shaped head, and cloth wings. Felicks Knapp in the third enchanted his French horn, and having studied music in magic, planned to enhance its abilities by playing it as he rode it. It sported a cardboard horse's head on the first bend, and a tail at the horn opening, which should fly out as Felicks blew. It had not occurred to him, until Friedrich Steiner decided to make fun of him, that it might appear to be farting. Felicks shrugged.

"My musical horse farts more sense than you usually speak anyway, Steiner," he said. Felicks might not be a Marauder, but he was close friends with Zoltan Nagy, who was; and Friedrich, as always, found himself outclassed verbally.

oOo

Felicks very nearly wanted to murder his entire class during the next week, when so much went wrong that there were threats of collective detentions over Halloween. First was the potion debacle. It has been noted by generations of teachers that there are years who are absolute dunces at one particular subject; and in the case of the third, it was potions. The class were studying shrinking solutions, and though Felicks and a few others were getting on with it with reasonable aplomb, and were achieving some kind of green colour, even if not a bright acid green, the majority of the class had either attained the orange colour showing careless use of their rat spleens or leech juice, and the shrinking of Joelle Staub's cauldron to nothing and the sudden explosion of daisies growing on and around her caused her to cry out in consternation.

"Fraulein Staub, you appear to have chopped your daisy roots too coarsely and unevenly," said Cacilia crisply. "Draw a school cauldron and try again; don't cry, you are at least a model student and do your best most of the time, and never interfere in dangerous ingredients like your sister. I can't think why you've become a poorer student since she left."

"Because I am afraid you will hold it against me!" wailed Joelle.

"You are not your sister. I have nothing against you, unless you choose to give me something to hold against you. Dear me, you had better go to the hospital and lie down; drink this!" Cacilia poured a calming draft. By the way Joelle drank it obediently without making faces, Felicks had to assume it was not glumbumble juice. He returned to contemplation of his cauldron in time to stop it burning.

Herman Langstab, Felicks' friend, who was normally able enough with a cauldron, had let himself become too interested in how Professor Von Freyer handled the sister of the girl who had burned out the potions dungeon through a piece of naughtiness. There was a dull CRUMP! And his cauldron shrank in an implosion that took the desk with it, spilling Felicks' work and that of the other two boys working on that table.

"Well, that is the last straw," said Cacilia, who had previously been ticking off various people for carelessness. "The whole class except Herr Knapp, Fraulein Fernandez and Fraulein Brandt can repeat this lesson in one detention, and as this is the last lesson of the day you can clear up your own messes so the elves don't have to, and if you are late for kaffee and kuchen, so be it."

Liselotte Brandt glowed to be let off; she was poor at potions but with encouragement from Cacilia, whom she adored, she managed to return a pass mark most weeks. Cacilia had chanted to cure her bad squint and she would do anything for the Potions mistress.

The potions debacle was followed by a detention for the whole class over several poor charms essays on cheering charms, a subject on which the whole class had entirely missed the point. In fairness to Professor Panov, the point was missed through the inattentiveness of his class who were surreptitiously watching out of the window where a centaur that had wandered out of the forest was trying to argue with the stone golem named Gerhardt. Felicks himself acknowledged the fairness of that one as he had absently written that cheering charms included those that animated strange beings to cheer people up with their antics.

It was the transfigurations class that really set the staff on edge.

Professor Nagy was never famous for being patient.

The class were struggling with turning hedgehogs into pincushions and back, and Periklis Theodrakis had had his knuckles rapped by Attila for producing a pincushion squealing in pain from the pins, which Attila promptly restored, healed, and confunded to forget the terror whilst Periklis learned a lot of irritable Hungarian. Attila had no problem over causing brief pain and terror to any maleficent little boy – or girl if it arose – but he was very tender hearted about distress caused to animals. Most of the other pincushions were still wandering around, Herman's attempts at a patchwork pincushion left a patchwork turd on the desk, and Melior Gdylan with a squeal of horror managed to turn himself into a pincushion.

Attila sorted out the confusion in silence, sorted out all the hedgehogs, and sent the Fernandez twins to take them back to their pens, as they could be trusted not to cause them distress, and when those little girls were out of the room and the hedgehogs out of earshot, he proceeded to vent his feelings with a blistering verbal excoriation on the entire class.

"Last year," said Attila, as he wound up, "it was the fourth, who were almost held down a year. This year, it may be the third, because I have heard of dire homework from your charms classes and Arithmancy, and of a disaster in the potions dungeon, and now you make a farce of a simple animate to inanimate transfiguration, and if any of you were interested in the lesson on animagi, I can only hope your interest was purely academic, because the powers help you if you ever try to become animagi pincushions or the like! I am seriously considering asking to have this year banned holidays until you can perform like scholars of thirteen years old instead of like wandless moppets of three!"

The class variously squirmed or sobbed.

It was, reflected Attila, the Triwizard. They had permitted themselves to become too over-excited about it, and had been concentrating more on that, than on their classwork. It was hardly surprising; they had suffered the indignity of invasion by the Russian supremacists at first hand, and seeing their blatant bad behaviour on the Wizarding Wireless Vision had exercised the children's minds rather too much, the more in a year which did not have the disciplined ranks of Marauders to prevent them from losing the plot.

He added,

"Just because you do not have Marauders in this year to help you to deal with the over-excitement of the irregularities of the Triwizard is no excuse to let these damned Russians win by losing your education," he said. "I want to see you pull up your game because you do not have to be beaten by them."

This was a surprise to the class who did not expect their fiery Transfigurations Professor to end on a relatively gentle note, and there were murmurs of anger, as Attila hoped there might be, over being made to fail by the Russians.

Felicks breathed again. If his classmates did pull up their game, he would not lose the chance to fly his French Horn at Halloween.

oOo

Nedelya had asked Sofie for a weather prediction, and Sofie had spoken to other diviners, and they had turned up a slight chance of drizzle in the morning and dry for the afternoon for Halloween, between periods of greater rain; and that, said Nedelya in satisfaction would do well enough. One of the predictions was from Hamburg airport, collected by the muggle weather diviners that Zyrillis had kindly looked up on the muggle computer magic. Nedelya was well content.

Those participating in the gymkhana assembled with their steeds, and there were gasps of envy and admiration at Sigismund and Lindhard on their beautiful green topiary steeds.

"That's what I call swanky," said Xanthippe.

The fourth were the oldest year to be competing, as it happened, since there was no urge to make idiots of themselves in the upper school, for the horsy amongst them would soon be able to compete on the adult circuit; and the fifth were besides indifferent to horsiness. The Jade Fag Marauders did, however, volunteer themselves as stewards and to rescue anyone in difficulty. It was decided that Sigismund and Lindhard might as well be in a class on their own competing against each other, since their steeds were rather out of the class of anyone else's. They had named their steeds Hecate and Ceridwen, which seemed appropriate for Samhain steeds, and their performance really was almost an exhibition. It might be said that some of the younger ones who had not thought themselves horsy enough to compete were suddenly secretly enamoured of the idea of riding.

Agata was to receive letters from a selection of parents asking why a stable was not maintained as there were now educated goblins from whom to select grooms to run them in a perfectly genteel fashion.

The little ones were to go next, after the impatience to see the vegetative horses had been assuaged, before they got too impatient, as was common in all children's events. Klarizsa, Magda and Ivaylo had managed some kind of flying charm on their hobby horses. Klarizsa had learned something of riding at the Von Freyer estate, Magda rode at home, and Ivaylo was determined not to be left out. Their flying charms were well out of the league of those who relied on hovering charms, not having put in time in the library, and Ivaylo found himself well ahead of several horsy children.

Naturally this didn't suit the likes of Helmgar Nachteule, who declared loudly that that the rotten Hungarian and Bulgarian brats were cheating. He dared say nothing about Magda, whose older brother was in the sixth and who was a German of good blood.

Cacilia stared at Helmgar.

"In what respect are they cheating?" she asked.

"Please, Professor, they are using spells we haven't been taught yet," said Helmgar.

"Why then is that cheating? They have used their initiative to do library work, as you too could have done. Is it cheating to not be lazy?"

Helmgar scowled. In his book it was cheating for non Germans to outperform him but as he had been in trouble for saying so before he did not voice this opinion.

"Are they allowed to use magic we haven't been taught then? Nobody said so," he sounded injured.

"I don't suppose anyone thought it was necessary to explain that to get ahead, research usually helps," said Katarina Nachtigall, dryly.

"Very enterprising of them," rumbled Orlando Carcano.

Helmgar retired, temporarily squashed.

"You'll see if we ever meet on the real circuit, if they even let scum like you in," he hissed.

"Not interested personally," said Ivaylo. "I just wanted to show you what a prune you are."

"And we girls will take great delight in showing you it all over again on real horses," said Magda, draping an arm around Klarizsa's shoulders. Cacilia had promised the use of horses to any of Sigismund's family who wanted to compete in holiday meets!

Next were the second and third years together, as they had fielded less competitors; and Nedelya and Valda had high hopes. The 'steeds' were more variable in this section, from Felicks and his French horn to Ilarion and the feral desk, whose lid was now halved and hinged at each side, folding out to be wings, and a cardboard horse's head on the back of the desk, and Ilarion sat inside it. His riding position earned him immediate respect from most of the school, many of whom had been chased by the feral desk and some bitten by it. In addition to these rather individualistic efforts were Xanthos Theodrakis, who was not especially horsy, but he did believe in joining in, who may have been poor at transfigurations, but who was rather good at charms, and having commandeered the gymnasium pommel horse had a rather frisky steed. Valda was riding an old rocking horse that Wennie had unearthed, and with a lot of patterns painted on it had made it fly. Nedelya, who was one of Attila's prize pupils, had folded an origami horse and had used a combination of enlarging charms and transfiguration to give it more places to bend.

This was a competitive field, but unlike some of the first, it was only ever a race for the fun of it. None of the competitors minded if they were first or last, though all intended to do their best. It may be said that the feral desk did not entirely share this spirit of friendly rivalry, and Ilarion later said ruefully that they might have had a better chance of placing had not the desk spent more time trying to attack rivals than it did just racing. However, that was the way life went!

Nedelya won by a nose, which was considered fair enough, since it had been her idea, Felicks second and Valda, to her surprise, third, while the feral desk and the pommel horse fell to fighting. It made a change, as Nedelya said, to the riders trying to sabotage each other; she had never seen a horse fight before. However, a good time had been had by all, and all enchantments bar those on the desk, and the topiary, were removed, and the topiary was turned loose in the maze again, where it was confined by magic save by the use of certain code words; and the desk was left to its own devices, which consisted of dive-bombing Gerhardt with apples it had filled itself with by the expedient of running hard into an apple tree.

Life returned to normal bar the Halloween feast and party.

As there had been the excitement of a gymkhana, which most of the school had enjoyed watching, there had been no need to occupy the school for the afternoon, and so the feast was followed with ordinary party games, and nothing out of the way. And while the Gymkhana had been going on, the top chanters in the school had been quietly disabling the reflective ability of any mirrors, owing to a warning from Hogwarts school that had been confirmed by the school diviners and Eve managed to exploit the ability that had blossomed in her since blooding to croak,

"Behold, the necromancer comes to steal the souls of the living," which was considered as good a confirmation as any. And Agata recalled that the former Supremacist, now Kaddi the elf, had said something about serving a prince who was a necromancer, and went cold all over. Divination really was not a fuzzy study when it was applied ruthlessly with combined efforts rather than treating seers as individuals and letting them get on with it in isolation. Well, that was one lot of excitement over, that could have been too exciting; and now it was the run-up to the ball with those attendant sillinesses. But at least without some poor silly child under the control of a necromancer.

oOo

Zyrillis approached Elfleda rather diffidently.

"Will you come to the ball with me?" he asked.

Elfleda blushed.

"I'd like that a lot," she said.

"Elfleda…" Zyrillis paused, reddened, and then smiled wryly. Their blood sang together after all. "Will you be my girl?"

"Oh Zyrillis! I… I would like that," said Elfleda. "I do like you an awful lot."

"I think we need to learn more about each other," said Zyrillis. "I mean as people, not as Marauders. Not that I am, exactly."

"You are a supporter," said Elfleda. "Perhaps we can see each other in holidays?"

"I think it's a good idea," said Zyrillis. "It's going to be busy though, I've been having dreams about the place Lilith was sent to, and I think that Russian fellow is going to try it on with someone."

"You?" asked Elfleda, fearfully.

"No, I'd get it clearer," said Zyrillis. "It's a bit peripheral. I want to see if I can go into a trance again, like Zlatko put me into over the Russian attack."

"Well, if need be, I'm sure Zlatko would come to do it," said Elfleda.

Zyrillis brightened.

"Yes, he probably would," he said.

The rest of the sixth had to sort themselves out; Xanthe and Xanthippe, missing Zlatko, decided to take Vighard and Alexand, and sorted out Scholastica to go with Alexand's friend Adolph. The Lower Sixth blooded had no problems, Wencelada going with Axel; and Grishilde, no longer feeling so close to Zyrillis, went with Lothar Weisel. Eve made a face and asked Friedrich Eichhörnen as he was mostly harmless. There was a dearth of male marauders. In the fifth, Kjell was also outnumbered, though as Elfleda was sorted, Kjell decreed that he could manage both Leva and Sofie. And the girls firmly arranged for Antoinette Labellette to go with Arkadi Rasputin, who was close to the Marauders.

The fourth had the opposite problem amongst its Marauders; Bronislava Frolika was the only girl with six boys.

"We can draw lots for who gets Broni, I suppose," said Sigismund, a little jealously, as he looked on Bronislava as his girl.

Bronislava tossed her head.

"As if I'm a prize in some raffle? Thank you, no. I say we should run with the idea we had when we were snotty brats, and we animate suits of armour and take them. We know how to do _piertotem locomotor_ now, and the Hogwarts version of _substitutiary locomotion_. We dress up six in drag and I take the corvus helmed one."

The boys brightened over this idea. Sigismund might have liked to dance with Bronislava, but he was happier that she should be nobody's partner than anyone else's, even though he would grin and bear it if necessary.

Sorted out, it may be said that the Musical Marauders did a lot of pointing and giggling at those who were less sorted, whilst surreptitiously teaching suits of armour how to dance. And if the enchantments were a little more competent than was strictly necessary, only Salvia Pippin was inconvenienced by a sashaying suit of armour which did a neat allemande right around her, and said 'excuse me' in a hollow voice.

Salvia murmured, 'not at all' and passed on, merely wondering vaguely what devilment the kids were up to.

Next to the likes of the Belle Marauders, who had been using _piertotem locomotor_ or rather, its substitute, from a ridiculously early age, the Marauders at Durmstrang were relatively quiet and not too disruptive. It was all par for the course!


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Pharamond was feeling quite buoyant. He had received an owl from his father, which as well as giving family news informed him that the now de-horneted Achille had gone haring off to Cairo. Pharamond knew that this involved a tiny clue on a fragment of a drinking cup in the Cairo museum, which referred to Prince Neferkheptah and the ways in which he hid the Book of Thoth. It was not tremendously helpful but should hint at other places to look. Achille was going to be tied up and frustrated for a while!

Even when Achille found the supposed tomb of Neferkheptah, he would need to hunt for the keys for the successive boxes in which the Book of Thoth was supposedly kept. Those who had studied enchantment and metalcrafting to high levels were involved in crafting those, and those skilled in hieroglyphs were decorating each box. Pharamond wished he could be more closely involved, but he would be playing his part in discussing translations in learned magazines in the holidays, in the hearing of Achille's spies.

Pharamond had been thinking hard, and had decided that the three Marauders in the Cinquième as well as those in the Quartième should be blooded, for their own protection. Madam Maxime would probably not like it; but then he did not intend to tell her. If Achille was feeling his oats, Pharamond wanted all the Marauders under the protection of the Blood Bond. He spoke to Jean-Luc, Abelard and Philomène about it.

"Go for it," said Jean-Luc. The other two nodded, soberly. Achille might be sidetracked, but his designs on Beauxbatons were very real.

oOo

France was to have its own Wizarding Wireless Vision broadcasts for the next task, and a brief piece on the Yule Ball; Lucius Malfoy had shared the secrets with Armand Duval, Pharamond's father, who had asked about purchasing shares; and Pharamond laughed over a letter from his father that Lucius was still chuckling that M. Duval had asked, and so far it had not occurred to the Herzog Von Frettchen in Germany to realise the full potential of the medium. Blood-joined as Pharamond was to Von Frettchen, he could feel the friendly rivalry between him and Lucius, and was aware that the Duke would be much chagrined when the full import of what he was missing occurred to him. He already had control of most of the newspapers in Germany and of the Wizarding Wireless, after all, and was, thought Pharamond, with affectionate contempt, like all Germans, inclined to live in the past. In this assessment he did misjudge Von Frettchen somewhat, since the duke was as forward-looking as anyone; he had just failed to consider this new medium as imperative as education. And perhaps until those who were watching the Triwizard at Durmstrang had left school, he might even be right to assume that there was no market as things in Germany stood.

Pharamond, however, was not acquainted with Von Frettchen beyond a peripheral bond, and was happy to gently despise the Germans as cultureless boors in time-honoured Gallic fashion. The three major European nations have ever thus dealt with their intense rivalries.

oOo

Homère Tisserand and Ithier were getting on like a cauldron on fire, which also pleased Pharamond. From a pact of mutual despite of their ex-lovers, they were finding a lot in common, and Homère was enjoying teaching the part goblin all about magic, with the hopes that he might one day sit the Examination Gagner Général or EGG. Ithier was a pleasant young man, who had managed to make friends with the rather crusty janitor, and who helped about the castle. Even Olympe Maxime admitted he seemed very pleasant, and if she might have wished to have Darryl back to legilimens him thoroughly, she sighed and kept her feelings to herself.

Then she swallowed her pride and sent for Pharamond.

Pharamond bowed beautifully, gave her a devastating smile,

"I am not responsible for the flesh-eating slugs in Mademoiselle Clairdelune's bath," he said, "But I have administered rough justice to those who were, and insisted that they remove them. It is out of proportion even for unfair marking."

"Oh, Pharamond, I know she is not fair, but at least she does not fall into silly attitudes very often to pronounce visions, and moreover she has never tried to frighten the children the way I have heard some Divination specialists do," said Olympe, diverted.

"She's not as dippy as some, but you might want to look for someone educated in Divination through Prince Peak," said Pharamond. "Viridian writes to me that their Divination teacher is very down to earth, and her major extra-curricular duties include working out days when there will be good weather for playing Quidditch. The English seem, on the whole, to have sensible ones."

"Madame Trelawney was not," said Olympe. "She told me that I was plainly a summer baby and that I should listen to the call of the salad of my birth time to ease myself from the imbalance that made me grow too big."

"Well, anyone can be afflicted by idiots, I suppose; and they got rid of her, didn't they?" said Pharamond. "Nothing to stop you asking Orlinda Schwalbe if she'll come back after a year or two out in the world; she's not so good a Diviner that she'll get a high flying job with it, but she's a half competent chanter, which never comes amiss, and she's a fairly decent sort. And she manages to keep Monsieur Étoilier sweet in Astronomy, as I understand, which is no easy task. I expect her parents expect her to make a brilliant marriage, but I also reckon that Orlinda has her own ideas about that."

"Well, there is that to consider," said Olympe. "Pharamond, I did not ask you here to discuss flesh-eating slugs and other Diviners, but to ask if you know legilimensy."

"Only if it doesn't get me into trouble," said Pharamond. "Darryl put me through a pretty stiff course in legilimensy and occlumensy over the summer holidays."

"Ah," said Olympe, in satisfaction. "I rather hoped he might leave me someone with that amount of training. What is your opinion of the man Ithier? Have you observed him, er, more closely?"

"You mean have I stuck my eyes down his brain, as the Snapes insist on putting it?" asked Pharamond.

"Such a clever family and yet such inelegant linguistic shortcuts!" said Olympe, with distaste. "Yes, I meant that."

"I did that before I even got Homère involved with him," said Pharamond, who had checked Ithier's motives almost as a matter of course. "I didn't want him hurt again, you know; I may not share his preferences, but I am fond of him."

Olympe nodded.

"You are a man who is at peace with himself, my Pharamond," she said, "that you are not uncomfortable with Homère's preferences. Thank you; I, too, do not want him hurt, but nor do I want the reputation of the school damaged in any way."

"Ithier is crazy to get an education," said Pharamond. "If you could persuade M. Cuilliere to permit him to use the potions dungeon and learn to brew, M. Tisserand is capable of bringing him to the EGG at least in all other subjects."

"I will make an offer to aid him, too," said Olympe. "It will tie this Ithier closer to the school and make him personally grateful to me. I want Homère settled; I am sure you can see why."

Pharamond laughed.

"Well, if I were not so comfortable with myself, I should have doubtless found his admiration of me a little oppressive. I am glad myself to have it redirected to another."

"Yes, it can be very trying," said Olympe. "When I was at school, one of the male professors liked to be dominated, and he looked upon me as one who might do so. You can't imagine the trouble it took to find a half troll female clever enough to train as a dominatrix."

"My goodness, I really can't imagine it," said Pharamond, who could easily enough picture his headmistress as a very jolly sort of dominatrix, but not a half troll woman.

One learned a lot about the staff when one was a senior.

oOo

Pharamond and his group had volunteered to run the Halloween celebrations, and that would include chanting to make sure that no mirrors operated for the duration of Samhain, since a warning had been received from Hogwarts that this might be a risk, and as Pharamond involved all the senior chanters prompted Orlinda to say,

"Oh, that makes clear the rather obscure reading I got from the cards. What a pity Mlle Clairdelune will not accept the readings of those from other schools as proof; there is no point at all in me writing it up."

"Write it up and I'll sign it," said Pharamond. "It may not affect your exams but it might affect a job application to teach in the future."

Orlinda shot him a look.

"What do you know that I don't?" she asked.

"Nothing really," said Pharamond, "I just happened to mention to someone that you wouldn't make a half bad Divination teacher if a post became vacant, because I don't see you settling down to marry some nice pure blood Junker with no brain."

Orlinda laughed.

"Thanks for that," she said. "The people coming out of Durmstrang are better these days, but I do want to prove I can hold a career before I consider marriage. I'll have to do the debutante thing though," she added, gloomily.

"And as well to be out of school for a while before going into teaching, I believe," said Pharamond. He did not add, 'especially in the same school.'

Halloween in France had never been lost in the wizarding community, as the Gallish Celtic celebration of Samhain was much the same as that in other Celtic communities, where food was put out to propitiate good spirits and masks worn to frighten away bad spirits. Naturally, commercialism had crept into the French celebration, as everywhere, and the ideas of muggles had seeped in. However, dressing as Vampires was probably less scary than dressing as the Fey who were probably the evil spirits initially propitiated and supposedly frightened. Pharamond personally suspected that the idea of the masks were to hide identities, since at the time of meeting of the quick and the dead, those who were grieving were easier to possess by great form spirits, knocking aside a soul which half longed to join loved ones anyway. More defences against the Fey existed in modern times, and pacts and treaties had been made.

Pharamond organised two parties; the first was for the youngest three classes together, which would include a competition to produce the best masks with whatever materials were to hand, and did not involve permanent damage to school property. That should prevent terrible things happening to things like pillowslips. The second party for the older ones appealed to the fashion conscious, being a competition for the best sparkly vampire costume in the best silly muggle tradition. Not that any of the children were aware that the glamorous profiles of Vampires had begun with muggles. Pharamond personally thought that Vampires were rather sad people, who were to be pitied for their affliction, but treated as dangerous. Unlike Werewolves there was no real hope of a cure, as the only cure for undeath was death. Pharamond paused to consider whether Philomène's facetious suggestion of a costume was suitable, or whether it would tip off Achille, as Philomène said she planned to come as the mummy of a female pharaoh.

"I suppose that it's another form of undeath, re-occupying the dead body with the _Ka_," said Pharamond, cautiously. "And we don't, I don't think, have any spies for Achille any more."

"No worse than one of the boys who has a German cousin coming as Abaris the lich, whom Durmstrang had to kill," said Philomène.

Pharamond relaxed.

"Oh, if others are doing different undead, it should be quite in order," he said. "But for your own comfort, I suggest you limit the amount of bandages."

"I was going to use a colour change charm and a prune-face curse," said Philomène, "and tie strategic bandages at places, and sew them between the skirt and the collar on a plain robe."

"Sounds good," said Pharamond. "You should look fairly ghastly; I don't know if the judges will think it stylish or horrible."

"I don't really care," said Philomène. "I'm only making an idiot of myself dressing up to set an example and help you thereby."

"You're the best," said Pharamond, kissing her firmly.

oOo

The parties went with a swing, and Pharamond had little doubt that those who volunteered to run the babes' party had more fun. The vampiric robes were, on the whole, very little different to the fashion models in magazines, so far as the participants could make them, with pale faces and enlarged canines. The robes were a little more daring than fashion usually dictated, and Pharamond tried hard not to roll his eyes. At least Erzuli appeared to have learned some common sense, coming in ordinary clothes with a dead white face and moving jerkily as a Voudon zombie. However, Pharamond reflected cynically, it was at least as likely to be because she was too lazy to think of anything more creative. The celebrants would have to rely on each other to take off any jinxes or makeup of course, as the mirrors went out of operation at sundown, but doubtless they would manage.

And after the whole business was over, and several silly creatures had been reassured that no evil spirits had eaten their mirrors, merely that a safety spell had suspended their usual function, the blooding ceremony might be prepared.

Notices had been sent to Chantelle, Amelie and Candide in the Troisième, Melusine and Armand in the Quartième, and now Auberon and Melisande and Emilien in the Cinquième. Auberon was the little brother of Amelie and Melusine, and as part fey was at risk from all kinds of things.

It was nice to see how the siblings realised how close they could be now!

oOoOo

May Shorg, Riker's next sister, had discovered that she was a year older than Lilith Snape, and had promptly settled down to work as hard as she could to make up some of what she felt as a deficiency; especially as her younger triplet sisters, Violet, Lilac and Iris, were often able to surprise her with their knowledge, because they collaborated to learn more, mostly for the purpose of jinxing older would-be bullies. The Free School kept the wands of its pupils in special lockers, and did not permit them to be taken home, so the three had worked hard on wandless magic practised on each other, in order to deal with detractors both of the school, and of their blood status. May had been disconcerted that they were able to easily dispose of a full blood goblin pimp who intimated that pretty girls could do better for themselves working for him than wasting their time at school, and Violet had said, "only if we go for jobs as bodyguards you git' and the three had left him bound, tickled, with bats pouring out of his nose and his rear end glowing like a muggle neon sign with uncontrollable and coloured farts. As there were no wands in the vicinity, it would register only as the sort of uncontrolled magic small children cast, and no investigation would be forthcoming. May was impressed and begged her little sisters to teach her how.

"It's in the will-power," said Iris.

"But if you join us you'll have to change your name," giggled Lilac.

"Why?" asked May.

"Because we're all the Purple People gang," said Violet.

"Mother never knew what she was letting herself in for when she named you lot," said May. "I have no idea what other flowers are named in purple so it's as well you're only triplets."

"Heliotrope," said Lilac.

"Lavender," said Iris.

"Pansy if you were pushing it," said Violet, "though Viola is closer, but it's also a bit close to me."

"If we had five, we could be the Purple People Pentacle," said Iris.

"If you wanted to stretch a point one could use Fuchsia, Orchid or Amaranth," said Lilac, who was a budding herbologist, "and it's because we see Amarantha as our patron because she inspired us because she taught herself to cast wandless and wordless. We hadn't got entirely to wordless yet."

"I'm impressed enough at wandless," said May. "Have you told Amarantha? I bet she'd be impressed too, and would be more than willing to sponsor you. And I really want to learn, but must I change my name?"

"Why not?" said Iris, the stroppy one. "We have daft-like names and May is almost ordinary."

May almost said that she liked ordinary but decided to hold her tongue.

"I'll think about it," she said. "And by the way, I have thought of another, not that I'd choose it, which is Prunella."

"Hmm, I suppose so," said Lilac. "Strictly Prunus covers cherries as well as almond and plums, and I guess you're thinking of plum-coloured. Morella, now…"

Iris and Violet poked her one on each side.

"At least she's trying," said Iris. "And by the way, Heather is another flower that implies the colour too. Or you wouldn't have heather-mixture as a colour of woollen cloth."

"Huh," said Lilac, "Prunella would be the best, actually, because May is also Blackthorn and that's Prunus spinosa."

"Oh all right," said May "so long as it's just between ourselves; can you imagine explaining to Mum and Dad, or worse to the Professors?"

"I bet the Professors would be all right about it," said Iris. "It sort of comes under those long words I can't remember that help you do transfigurations when you're older."

"Assimilative something," said May, glad to have remembered that much.

"We can ask Riker," said Violet.

oOo

Riker sometimes wished that he went to a large school, instead of being one of just a handful who were staying on to do NEWTs. At that, some of the NEWT class at that were students from previous years who had talked very fast to pay a nominal sum to take one or two NEWTs now that they needed to rise in their professions. That most of them were in jobs beyond the wildest dreams of their youth, earning five or six times what they might have expected as uneducated members of the wrong end of society, was neither here not there. Once ambition had been tasted the sweet taste of success could breed the desire for more. And Professor Longbottom had decreed that his pupils were always his pupils, and could return for more. It has to be said that most of those who were studying further were concentrating more on those aspects of the NEWT they were taking that would further their careers; though Madam Senagra Konal-Snape had waxed snippy in the Transfigurations class, regarding the application of the mind to all aspects of the work if anyone hoped to pass the exam; and that entry to the training of a Healer would not happen without that pass.

Riker was taking three NEWTs which was certainly not common; he had not felt himself equal to emulating Mortimer Bane who had taken five NEWTs at Hogwarts, nor even Storm and Zephyra, who were studying four. He preferred to do well in his exams than risk lower grades. Riker had chosen the two subjects for which he had a good feel, which was Transfigurations and Geomancy, the latter of which was a hobby class taught by Abraxus Malfoy to those who wanted to learn more than the basics. Riker was also taking Arithmancy, which was the basis of all serious magic, and fairly important for any Geomancer and came in handy for the point at which one took Transfiguration into the ritual level. Madam Konal-Snape could be relied on to be sidetracked onto more esoteric subjects if one asked the right questions. She had been at school when Deatheaters were still being rounded up, and was a part of the notorious group said to be able to bounce the Killing Curse. As indeed were most of the professors, some of whom had actually fought Voldemort!

Riker considered that those who came to the Free School were much privileged that such exalted persons gave time to teaching the lowest in society rather than being lionised in Society, and that it behoved anyone they taught to give their all. Which was why those who turned up wanting to learn just enough to progress in their careers irritated him somewhat. He was determined to get three 'O' grade passes, even though that took real work in Arithmancy. But Professor Kinat Konal was a good teacher, who made learning easy.

Riker felt a moment's guilt, and he went to see Professor Abraxus Malfoy.

"Sir, my sister suggested I should offer to teach Geomancy in Beauxbatons, and I thought it was a good idea, but it has occurred to me, you're not the regular teacher, you teach it as a hobby here, and to first years. Should I come back here to teach?"

"Lad, if you can get Madam Maxime to agree, it's far better to teach in a school you haven't attended," said Abraxus. "We welcomed back Bjorn Bjornsson to teach Care of Beasts but that's partly because he feels uncomfortable outside of his own environment, and making a Bearsark jumpy is never a good idea. And it's a more informal study, too. Besides, less people here are interested, you'd almost be wasting your time. I will certainly write you a reference if you, er, offer yourself to Madame Maxime," and he gave a filthy wink.

Riker flushed.

"Sir!" he said.

Abraxus chuckled.

"Well, you know what they say about the French," he said.

oOo

In Rowan House, Harry Crockford was rooting for his cousin, Riker, in the Free School, as was only natural; he was five sixteenths goblin and had manifested no magic, and was therefore logged as a squib. Vladimir Malfoy had acquired permission to make a special study of him, as no part-goblin squib had ever been recorded, and Vladimir was convinced that Harry was merely a late developer. He had also quickly pooh-poohed any superstitious ideas Harry had had regarding his parents tempting fate by naming him after Harry Potter!

The other squib in the class was Iphianira Hallow, who was keeping very quiet about rooting for the big sister she adored, who was so kind to her. The Russians were not popular and Iphianira wished her sister was not at the horrid school which Iphianira suspected left her bullied quite as much as she had been at Durmstrang, where Aglaia had been badly wand-burned in her early years. Iphianira was pleased to be a squib if it meant she went to a nice school with decent people; she had pleaded to go to school because she wanted to learn something, and was proving very good at Arithmancy, and Ancient Runes too, even if she found the other magical studies available to squibs boring. She could get nothing from a cauldron, but quite enjoyed Chemistry, and was delighted that her Chemistry Professor, William Pepper, had married her adored Arithmancy Professor, Fenella Fenwick.

Iphianira liked Harry; he took Arithmancy seriously too, unlike his friend, Aaron Jones, who had a brother at Hogwarts as well as a sister higher up Rowan House. And Harry stood by Iphianira when some of the kids wanted to tease her for having the same name as the Russian champion.

"It's an old name, like Malfoy; you gotta expect it to have spread about a bit," said Harry, absently nutting one of those who had pushed Iphianira.

"Thanks," said Iphianira, when he had helped her run them off. Iphianira had grabbed her hockey stick to defend herself, which had helped.

"You've been awfully down, Iphie, are you related to her?" asked Harry.

"She's my sister, and what she looks like on the Wizarding Wireless Vision isn't what she's like at home, and oh! I wish she wasn't at that horrid school, I'm sure they hurt her, like they used to at Durmstrang!" said Iphianira.

"Why was she sent to Durmstrang, for goodness sake?" asked Harry. "What's wrong with Hogwarts?"

"Hallows used to go to either Hellibore's, if they were boys, or Cackle's if they were girls," explained Iphianira. "But I think it's because when Professor Snape took over Cackle's, he brought in goblins. And Hogwarts already had them. And Madame Maxime is half giant, or so it's rumoured; so mummy and daddy wanted Aglaia to be with totally human fellow pupils and preferably as close to pure blood as possible."

Harry made a rude noise.

"That's the most awful tripe!" he said. "How come they don't mind you being with us lot?"

"I don't count; I'm a squib," said Iphianira. "I expect I shall be Aglaia's servant when I grow up, or possibly have to leave school when she's a debutant next year. And being educated I'm more useful."

"That's awful, how can she expect you to be her servant? Her own sister?" gasped Harry.

"Oh Aglaia will look after me," said Iphianira. "You see, when I was born, mummy was really very unwell, and so Aglaia looked out for me, and did lots for me. She didn't want it just left to Miffy – our house elf – who also had plenty to do nursing mummy. They didn't know, of course, I was a squib then. Aglaia was just starting to manifest magic then, and she practised to be able to do warming charms on my milk and things like that. And when she went to Durmstrang, she was horribly bullied for being English, so she's got a really strong shield charm, and she knows how to pretend she doesn't care, and she hates goblins because if they hadn't been in Prince Peak, she could have gone there."

Harry whistled.

"It's a cockeyed reason for hating goblins, but I almost kind of get it," he said. "Your parents must be nuts; there's no difference between us, humans, goblins or part bred."

"Well, I've found this out, but you see, my parents don't account my opinion for much, because I'm a squib, and they equate that with mentally subnormal and unable to understand what they call the realities of life," sighed Iphianira.

Harry gave her a hug; it was about all he could do. He gave a silent prayer of thanks to whatever Powers there might be that he had sensible and decent parents, who loved all their children equally, and encouraged him to tell them about the muggle lessons he was learning. Harry was actually a bit of a computer whizkid and hoped for a job hiding a school in obviousness, or working with the Aurors' office cross-correlating crimes in the muggle and wizarding world.

It had not occurred to him that the Ministry of Magic might have other uses for a computer geek; he despised the Ministry too much to think of it.

Iphianira was as computer literate as any of those who went through Rowan House, which was to say several steps up on most wizards and witches, but using it was her limit, and she was tremendously proud of her friend who tackled HTML with the aplomb her sister managed to brew a tricky potion. She only wished that her sister could appreciate the muggle skills to recognise that they took as much effort and learning! However, at least Aglaia listened to her, even if only with amused tolerance at the silly muggle subjects. And Iphianira was looking forward to Yule, when perhaps her sister would tell her why her letters were rather terse and uninformative. Iphianira was certain that Aglaia was not happy.

oOo

Aglaia was not happy, but she had no intention of showing that to anyone, any more than she had at Durmstrang. Her dissatisfaction with Dolokhov as a headmaster remained deeply concealed; and in truth she despised him. She knew that the Prince Peak children managed transfigurations beyond the ordinary – her own experiences of having rhubarb fingers having inspired her to work on her own time on a subject she found difficult - but Dolokhov reckoned himself to be skilled at ritual. If he was skilled at ritual, he should be able to undo the curses put on him by a bunch of schoolchildren, even if he needed the senior ritual students to add a chant to help him. Aglaia did not consider herself especially skilled at ritual, since it had been a new subject for her at the Russian school [and another point of resentment against Prince Peak, which seemed to teach it at an earlier age than the Russians] but she had put her back into learning what she could. And she was fairly certain that she could lay in a ritual of restoration in a knotwork circle embellished with fiery runes that if passed over Dolokhov's head would entirely negate the curses.

Aglaia considered doing it, just to see if she was right, and just to gain advantage with Dolokhov; but as the fool appeared to have no idea where to even start to extract himself from his predicament, and had not asked his seniors for help, she decided not to bother. Aglaia could be like that.

She wrote it up, however, and placed it under fidelius charm in her locker. She did not want anyone tampering with it, but on the other hand, it was there, just in case; and besides, she might be able to ask a ritual curse breaker one day. It might even be worth swallowing some pride and asking Snape.

Meanwhile, the term was to be endured, and then the foolish ball at Beauxbatons before Yule. Russia did not celebrate Halloween at all, so there was no holiday break to be had for that. The All Hallows Eve was very much an Orthodox Christian festival in Russia, and fun and games were frowned on amongst muggles. The Wizarding community had never had the same Celtic traditions as those countries that had once been a part of the Keltoi sphere. The only observance of any kind was Unity Day, on November 4th, celebrating an overthrow of the invading Polish, and the maintaining of a Russian identity. It having been before the statute of secrecy, Russian wizards had opposed Polish ones as well as muggles fighting. But it was a time of patriotic excess, not fun and games, and Aglaia had no patriotic zeal for Russia. It was another thing to be endured, and to keep her fingers crossed behind her back during the compulsory voluntary expressions of loyalty to Prince Aleksandr. She applied herself to her lessons, and brushed up the almost forgotten ability she had trained in herself as a small child to cast wandlessly, when she had been caring for Iphianira. After all, if she could cast warming spells and cleaning spells wandlessly, she could cast other spells. It would do no harm to learn to cast wordlessly too. It was possible, and she had seen it done. Aglaia had no very great expectation that Dolokhov would have any compunction about punishing her if she did not do well, and she intended to be ready for him.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

"I've got a piece of research that anyone may have a look at, if you are inclined towards ritual," said Severus, one morning to the assembled school. "Vladimir Malfoy asked if the postgraduate class could have a look at it, but there's no reason that the rest of you who are good at that sort of thing shouldn't glance through it too, so long as you are up on interpreting Malfoy lines."

"It's sort of necessary for serious ritual affecting anyone," said Zhenga. Severus smiled at her.

"Which is why I'm opening it to anyone – providing your normal studies don't suffer. I wouldn't normally throw a difficult piece of research at babes your age, but you Ubiquitous Marauders have really made ritual magic your personal study."

"We can't let the Musical Marauders in Durmstrang beat us, sir," said Bruno, seriously.

"What ARE you like!" said his sister Roseli.

"A Marauder," replied Bruno, fairly unanswerably.

"Vladimir has been, as some of you know, studying squibs for many years," said Severus. "It has already been determined that a squib who engages in blood magic may be as magical as anyone else; as may some muggle sensitives who are close to being wizards. Vladimir is of the opinion that the condition of being a squib may have been caused by a long-distant curse by the fey – yes, they do get about, don't they?" he said with a grim smile as there were gasps. "and that this has led to a deeply buried condition carried in the heritance which may show up when the parents carry it strongly and result in the birth of a squib, whose magic is not non-existent, but is in fact blocked. That the older, purer blood families tend to bear the most squibs seems to correlate with this. More of the anti-magic heritance, if you will."

"Which being so, it would be worth working towards a chant one day to remove the whole damn problem," said Krait, "But that's for longer term research yet. Uncle Vladimir wants us to look over his work, and see if we can design a chant to open up squibs. I don't see that it should be terribly difficult, once applying the power of twenty three and its attendant implications."

Krait did not mention twenty three factorial; that, and its relations to human chromosomes was something of a Marauding secret, but the older Marauders would know what she was talking about, and any other work by those not in the know would still be useful.

"What about muggles who nearly can? Do we have data on them? I remember how the Muggle Marauders managed to get by," said Yrdl.

"And my magic is stronger since I joined the Blood Pact," said Lee Nuffield. "I learned to do magic at seventeen when I first saw it, but it IS clearer now my blood has that connection. And I was already a Parselmouth from my Slytherin heritance. I can't help wondering if the fey used something from sensitives who could not actually get anything out of a wand, and I'm also wondering if the illegitimate Slytherin line I spring from was also cursed, perhaps by one of the legitimate line, to prevent too much muggle dilution, because they didn't understand hybrid vigour."

"I wouldn't say you are wrong at that, Lee, uh, Professor Nuffield" said Severus. "I'm inclined more to wonder if it were the Gaunt line; none of them were, let's face it, terribly tightly wrapped. But why not trot over to see Vladimir? He might be able to get a line on that. There's probably quite a well of potential up in the Fens if so."

"I will," said Lee. "And anyone who wants to look at my Malfoy lines is quite welcome to do so."

"Vladimir feels that he may have made something of a breakthrough, as one of the squibs he has been studying is part goblin; and there are no documented cases of a goblin squib before," said Severus, "however, the boy's mother, who is human, has a squib in her ancestry, which may be significant. You will discover when you read the research that certain hormones – that is, chemicals in the body – are released when a young wizard or witch is threatened by muggles when they begin to manifest magic, presumably as some kind of defence to inhibit uncontrolled display of magic by blocking the magical markers that permit it to manifest. We have documented cases of this, including our own Conrad," he smiled at Conrad Grailsquest, "Who has managed to overcome the blockage of his magic, as presumably any young wizard might if helped gently."

Severus reflected dryly that Ariana Dumbledore might also have overcome it, had she only been permitted a normal life. He wondered briefly if half of Neville Longbottom's problems had been caused by a release of the hormones, but at a much earlier age, prompted by the attack on his parents; it seemed not unlikely.

"So you mean that in a squib, these hormones are released more?" asked Flo. As she intended to be a healer like her father, Flo was interested, and was rather more knowledgeable about muggle Biology than most.

"Yes; Vladimir believes they are released at a slow rate all the time, rather than a massive amount as a response to terror," said Severus. "As I've studied muggle Chemistry, he has been in correspondence with me, though I'm no great biochemist. But with the slightly different markers from a part goblin squib, Vladimir feels that we may now have enough to formulate a ritual to alter the biochemistry of the body of a squib and hence to essentially cure them, even if it may take some time for the effects to clear from the body. Though having said that, a chant can readily clear a poison, which essentially is what it is," he added.

"Argus would be happy to be experimented on," said Krait, quietly.

"I imagine he would," said Severus. "You got him to cast some cleaning spells, which argues that some squibs can push aside the block with enough will power."

"You've got a purpose, haven't you, in telling us right now, haven't you, sir?" said Yrdl, shrewdly.

"Well, yes, I have," said Severus. "I listen to any Malfoy hunch and all of my diviners. And I'm not sure I care to be specific yet, indeed, I'm not sure I can be specific yet, but it seems like a good idea to be working on it."

"Who gets the credit if the school works it out?" asked Leesitsa dryly.

"Well, as almost all the work has been done by Vladimir Malfoy, I'd say he's the one who deserves the credit," said Severus, even more dryly. "I'm sure he'll list anyone who has a major hand in the ritual when he publishes, but then, Leesitsa, you don't actually know as much about ritual as my babes in the third."

Leesitsa, who had thought she was quite knowledgeable about ritual, flushed. Mostly with chagrin over the accuracy of that comment.

"Essentially then, it's a question of understanding the nature of the hormone and its actions on the magical markers?" said Flo. "There are six magical markers in the heritance of any human, goblin or elf, or other fey, I suppose, who are solid, and in pure muggles, all of them are inactive."

"And four or more being active indicates a witch or wizard," said Severus. "And some pure blood witches or wizards have less than six active, which Vladimir hypothesises, and I agree, means a question of some released hormone, possible as birth trauma, which may have permanently damaged one or two markers. As those of you who have studied it know, but I'm sure not all here are aware, the markers determining how magical someone is are also marked by length. Some pure blood wizards and witches with all markers, but short in length, often described as 'almost a squib' disparagingly by relatives, may indeed be just that. Their poor ability may be caused by a very low trickle release of hormone, which means they, too, could be treated. I don't think there's much that can be done for those with permanently turned off markers."

"I think it's more likely that there's a DNA inhibitor present that in squibs is active all of the time, and it's a different mechanic than the adrenaline-like response seen… though adrenaline could trigger the inhibitor. Only the body would build up a tolerance to the hormone over time, but a DNA inhibitor would effectively prevent the creation of a protein that is essential for the ability to use magic. And that would also explain late bloomers – they need more time for that protein to build up to enough of a level to use magic," said Mungo, whose studies into shapeshifters had led to him studying genetics.

"It sounds plausible to me," said Severus.

"Though muggles who are sensitives, with three active markers, can be brought on by blood ritual, could not it be turned on by chanting?" asked Zlatko.

"I don't know," said Severus. "There's still a lot of research to be done, and I fear we enter the realms of family shame. People seem ready to permit the squibs in their families to be experimented on; but try to hide those who have some, but low, ability. I personally hypothesise that some markers on some people may have permanent damage, which is less easy to overcome than turning on an inactive one. And that may be from early fey experiments, and may just be carried in the heritance and not from a birth trauma release of hormone. Or it may be both. Once more people are willing to be studied, a better database may be formulated."

"Oh, I know the type of parent," said Zlatka. "The 'there's nothing wrong with my child how dare you suggest it' type."

"Quite," said Severus.

"I believe that I may be able to help," said Amyetis. "We have a number of pure blood families in Assyria who have lost power and find it embarrassing; but as it is common knowledge, they might well be prepared to be studied in the hopes of finding a solution. It comes of inbreeding," she added.

""Then that seems to bear out the idea that it is from early experiments of the fey to limit wizards," said Severus. "If you wouldn't mind writing to them, Princess Orinjade, and asking, I'd be very grateful."

"We have a culture which fears what we call Demons; knowing that it was probably a demonic curse would move people to co-operate, I have no doubt," said Amyetis.

"Well, we have run out of time, so I shall leave you all to debate and study in your own time," said Severus. "I will permit the study of this in common rooms, but NOT in bedrooms. And anyone showing signs of overwork is off it. Now scoot to your lessons, and my apologies to those professors whose first lesson I have truncated."

The school dispersed, excitedly. It was fun to have something real to think about!

Severus certainly intended using parts of the needed chant in his lessons, because doing something practical concentrated the mind wonderfully; and he knew that Lydia, as junior Chanting mistress, intended to do likewise. It would be, he reflected, quite impossible without some understanding of muggle science, and biochemistry. Indeed, however good at ritual any wizard might be, without accepting that muggles were more advanced in matters of understanding how the body worked at a cellular level, he could never achieve the results of someone who ruthlessly applied knowledge from both worlds.

Any more than a muggle doctor could heal as well as someone like Healer Visick who applied muggle techniques where appropriate and magic as a matter of course.

oOo

Conrad Grailsquest was very happy that he had been of use to Mr Malfoy. Mr Malfoy had visited him in England and asked him sensible questions, as though he was a proper person, not the rather dippy questions asked loud and slowly as though he was a moron that his relatives managed. He had been happy for his father to show Mr Malfoy his Malfoy lines – because Mr Malfoy had never been taught magic, and had some trouble with a wand as his magical ability had atrophied! Some people had awful parents, and Conrad was grateful that his were really good. Mr Malfoy had also used a muggle device to take some of his blood, which had hurt a little, but which Mr Malfoy assured him would be burned once he had examined it, so nobody would have any ritual material. Conrad had not considered the idea of ritual material, but was flattered that Mr Malfoy thought him potentially strong enough that anyone might bother.

However, pleased at being useful as Conrad might be, he was not especially interested in formulating a chant, which was the business of those who were really good at it, and not just using it to help magic to flow. He was more interested in the musical his class was putting on, and hoping to perform at Halloween. He was having great fun manipulating the shadow puppet dragon, and he hoped the children from Hellibore's school would, if they attended, be a little less dippy this time, and not ask so many truly stupid questions. Why, last time, you'd think they'd never played with clockwork earthquakes, or even heard of liquid portkeys!

Conrad was faintly in awe of the abilities of the Ubiquitous Marauders but had no real idea just how extraordinarily talented they were. He was also unaware that his average borderline E grades lifted him above most young wizards, as he had to work very hard to attain them, and still usually managed a T grade at Arithmancy, despite all the extra coaching. Numbers jumped around so much. Conrad was wondering whether Madam Granger and Madam Malfoy-Snape would accept this as an excuse as it sounded pretty poor prunish really; but he decided to ask Madam Malfoy-Snape on the grounds that she was less likely to snap at him for it. He did need an Arithmantic calculation for where to hover his lumos charm behind the dragon after all.

Krait listened to this explanation, levelled her wand at him, and laid out his Malfoy lines with a magnification to one section laid in so smoothly that even Conrad recognised how well it was done. She gave a snake-like hiss.

"No wonder you have an Arithmancy blindness, my dear boy," she said, "and it's my bad that I didn't check this before, I do apologise!"

"What is it?" asked Conrad, more interested than worried.

"It's a version of a small imbalance that muggles call dyslexia, or word blindness, that means some people have difficulty learning to read, because the letters jump around the way your numbers do. It's called Dyscalcula and it's easy enough for any half competent witch to fix, if they only had the brain to look for it in the first place, and I do wish you'd said ages ago about the numbers jumping, because then I might not have been so dim, and you might have been fixed up ages ago."

"It sounded so poor prunish," said Conrad. "And I didn't think Madam Granger would be happy with it."

"Well, Madam Granger, being muggleborn, tends to forget that muggles sometimes know best," said Krait, dryly. Hermione had her blind spots. "A quick chant should fix it, and then your numbers should stay put on the page and sixes and nines should stop pretending to be each other."

"You know about that too?" Conrad gasped.

"It's a part of it," said Krait, and proceeded to chant.

Conrad went away and promptly did his Arithmancy homework without any trouble, before embarking on Arithmancy projects of his own. He received later a snippy note in red from Krait on his Transfigurations essay, which he skimped, that being cured of Dyscalcula was no excuse to skip other work, especially hers.

Conrad was duly chastened.

Krait meanwhile sought out Hermione.

"The Grailsquest kid finally got around to telling me that all his numbers jumped around which was why he couldn't do Arithmancy," she said.

"Numbers jumping around? What nonsense, he's lazy about it, could do much better if he only applied himself," said Hermione.

"Hermione, you poor prune, have you never heard of dyslexia and dyscalcula?" said Krait. "I am glad he brought his explanation to me, not to you; if you'd said that to him, he'd have never dared mention it again, and would have felt a physical problem was his fault."

Hermione flushed scarlet.

"Is that what was causing it? I… does it make numbers jump around? How frightening!"

"Yes, isn't it?" said Krait, who could understand how scary someone like Hermione would find the idea of numbers not behaving as they ought. "I fixed it, anyway, so with luck his grades should improve, and across the board at that. You might want to consider asking anyone else who is dire if they have actual trouble identifying the numbers sometimes."

"I will. Thank you, Krait," said Hermione.

oOo

Engelbert Hellibore accepted the invitation to a Halloween party with the Prince Peak children, on behalf of his school. Severus knew how to run a good party, and keeping the ties was an important thing. Besides, his Divination teacher had managed to have a bit of a seer fit and croaked something about the reflections of madness at samhain and he wanted Severus to unravel such rubbish.

Severus was happy to unravel the rubbish.

"There's several good indications that the Russian necromancer…"

"Wait, you said what?" yelped Hellibore.

"Prince Aleksandr is a necromancer. He's trying to find out how many muggles he will need to kill to use their death agony to power whatever artefact it is that I must use as the seat of my power," said Severus. "He likes inferii and so on; no accounting for tastes."

"You take such rubbish, such evil rubbish so calmly!" gasped Hellibore.

Severus shrugged.

"Past being surprised by the stupidity and evil of too many of the human race, or any sentient, I guess," he said. "Anyway, Aleksandr the Ambitious appears to have been researching the silly games people play at Halloween, and has come up with the idea of possession through reflection in mirrors at a time when spirits are, in the Western tradition, less tightly tied into bodies than usual. As a result, all those schools targeted are going to be disabling the reflective ability of mirrors for the duration of Samhain, and I was going to warn you about it closer to the time. However, if you are all out of the castle, that means only my mirrors to disable so long as you order all your elves to turn mirrors to the wall and not to look in them. Elves tend to be obedient, after all. And I don't think he'd pick an elf as a tool, but then, I might be wrong, so let's play safe."

"Hell's teeth!" swore Hellibore.

"That was more or less what I said, when Law woke out of a bad dream last week of an evil man reaching out of a mirror," said Severus. "Lilith apparently put together the idea from less clues, and proceeded to warn me and most of the other Marauders, just in case we were at risk too. Law confirmed it for me. His name is Lawrence; and the other Lawrence in the class is known as Rence. Kids sort these things out pretty well," said Severus, seeing Hellibore looking confused over the name.

"Well, I have no doubt that you will manage to safeguard both schools expeditiously," said Hellibore. "And I'm going to tell the elves to remove all mirrors, including hand ones, just in case any of my staff left in the castle try their hand at foolish divining games."

"Wise move," said Severus, who would personally have explained to his staff why it was a bad idea and trusted to their wisdom.

Probably anyone prepared to teach in Hellibore's school needed their wisdom queried in any case.

oOo

"Our parents are going to see if we can transfer here next year," said Galena Mordaunt to Zhenga. "We had to support Sardo of course; and if he hadn't been chosen as the school champion we'd have asked to come after Yule."

"Gosh, it's going to be quite a big class, then," said Zhenga. "We're having one of Riker Shorg's sisters too, and his triplet sisters in the class below, and WHAT a waste of triplets not to be with us as well as twins."

"It does seem a shame," said Garnet.

"Well, the Questing Marauders do have twins to go with the triplets, be fair," said Wilhelm.

"The what?" said Galena.

"The Marauders in the year below us are the Questing Marauders, and we're the Ubiquitous Marauders," said Wilhem."

"We right wrongs, oppress the oppressors and pull japes," said Fyra.

"It sounds pretty good," said Garnet. "Can we join?"

"If you are up for a life time commitment to be ready to give everything for all other Marauders," said Zhenga. "It's not a kids' game. It was started by the father of Harry Potter and friends to look out for a kid who needed it, and when Harry was fighting Voldemort HIS friends were Marauders they made a blood pact to bleed for him. And die for him if need be. And it carried on, and now we've got Russians to fight; the older ones had Odessa. Think hard if you want to join."

The twins stared.

"That's…. more than we'd have guessed," said Galena.

"Does your headmaster know?" asked Garnet.

The Ubiquitous Marauders, who had collected the twins when they came for the party, laughed.

"He's one of the originals," said Bruno. "Along with James Potter, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew and Remus Lupin. Remus was a werewolf and there wasn't anything to even help him then, and the other boys were animagi to be with him and stop him doing anything he would regret. And a lot of other Marauders are animagi too, because of that. But we haven't bothered. Our thing is ritual magic."

"I thought that was something people learned in the Ministry?" said Garnet.

There were hoots of derision.

"They know less about ritual magic in the Ministry than… than…" Alrik sought a comparison low enough.

"…than small Merope Snape and she isn't six until the new year," said Fyra.

"Well, they might know more than Merope, but less than Draxana, who's eight and who can drop a delayed action jinx already," said Serrik. "I made the mistake of tickling her to shift her from the stables when I wanted to ride, and her tickling jinx hit me as I was getting ready for bed."

"You should have asked nicely first," said Wilhelm.

"That's what she said when I went to apologise and ask her to take it off," said Serrik. "She's just almost as able as Lilith at the same age, I reckon."

"Is it true she's only thirteen?" asked Galena.

"Yes, same as us," said Zhenga. "She's rather good, isn't she?"

"She's amazing," said Garnet.

"Don't get a crush on her; she has a boyfriend," said Zhenga, dryly. "Now are we going to go to the party or not?"

The party was in two parts, as was common; the fourth and above were playing relatively decorous pen and paper games, and the three junior classes were playing more physical games which involved things like rowing the length of the great hall on teatrays without letting the candles in pumpkin lanterns go out. Those who were artistically inclined had decorated everywhere with pumpkin lanterns, an American custom which had caught on in Britain.

The upper school were unravelling famous wizard anagrams and fitting them into crossword grids. Ulysses Hobday was heard to say such things were childish, and was rounded on by a tall girl not wearing uniform who said,

"If we of the post graduate studies do not find it childish, then I suspect it is your perception that is at fault, not the games. Or maybe you find excuse because you are too stupid or lazy to work the clues out. Whichever, you are a very rude little boy to be so uncultured as to comment on the entertainment your hosts have seen fit to lay on. You are a large boy to be in the fourth; you would be well served if any thought you to be in the sixth where such comments would of course be just too childish for words."

Mafalda knew perfectly well that Hobday was in the upper sixth, and that he had made a naughty fuss about not being chosen as champion for the school. She just chose to pretend not to recognise him.

Hobday opened his mouth to protest and shut it again.

"Wise move," said Guy Speedwell, also in the post graduate group, and head boy of Hellibore's from the previous year. "Mafalda doesn't take prisoners. And please don't show up the school in front of Severus' two Russian postgrads. We don't want them thinking that any of us are as uncultured – nicultyuniy is their word – as Dolokhov, or Lord Flexi Jerkoff."

Hobday subsided. He did not bother to join in any of the games, however, which was his loss. He did not even crack a smile at the hilarious game of consequences which wound up the party before the feast, which featured such gems as "Santa Claus met Agata Bacso in a muggle train station. He said, 'shall we get ice cream?' and she said 'is that a wand in your robe or are you pleased to see me?' and the consequence was they repotted fanged geraniums."

After the feast was the play, and this time Hellibore was looking forward to enjoying himself.

He was not disappointed, and if the magic was not quite so extreme as in the previous play, there was a sufficiency of accomplished charms not normally encountered at fourth year level. Especially as Brigitte and Solange had indulged in library work to permit them to dance and sing up a fidelius charm to enable a very rapid scene change. And Hellibore did mutter 'bless my soul, that fellow is naked!' at Sarah's streaker.

The musical was better crafted, perhaps, then the previous year's pantomime, and the moments of unintentional humour were fewer, but if it lacked the spark of maniacal fun, it had a near professional feel to it to make up for that. And the music, as always from the clever Prince Peak musicians, was sublime. And Hellibore applauded readily.

"Your playwright will go far," he said to Severus.

"Yes, if he doesn't get creamed by dark wizards for going too far with his satire," said Severus, who had almost sobbed with laughter when a rival team owner who was a necromancer had sent inferii to play against the heroes. This was also a gentle dig at any postgraduates from Durmstrang, who had been menaced by inferii on the quidditch pitch a few years previously. Some fast jinxes had been in order to turn the opposing team into inferii. Hellibore had missed all the satire, but did not want to mention this.

"He'll do well, I think, and I'm sure he will be careful," he said.

"Are you, Engelbert? I'm not," said Severus. "Well, he has his career as a Quidditch player first, and I doubt he'll care to play for his native Russia, ssince he chose us over the Cheestykrovy Schkola."

"A multitalented youth," said Hellibore. "Shall we get together for Yule too?"

"May as well," said Severus. "You'll come here again? Excellent, we have more room than you, I think."

And maybe the Hellibore boys might have learned to dance by this year. But somehow, Severus doubted it.

oOo

_My thanks to my wonderful Beta, who understands biochemistry and whose words I have stolen verbatim to put in Mungo's mouth. _


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"It is going to be a bit of a challenge to choose half a dozen supporters," said Biirta, referring to those she would be allowed to take to other challenges.

"Well you need not count me as one of the potential choices," said Theodoric Kranz, "so you're limited to the also-rans, if indeed a bossy piece like you has any friends."

Biirta did not bother to prevent her friends from jinxing Theodoric into a ball with green tentacles and propelled by orange farts. She did undertake a quick chant to undo him.

"I think that answers your questions about my friends," she said mildly. "I wouldn't choose you if all my friends were incapacitated for some reason, because you are a rude and covertly racist boy, and I dislike you intensely."

"I'm going to tell about how you set them all on me!" said Theodoric.

"If you tell lies like that to the head, you will probably be expelled," said Biirta. "Because he's going to extract that several people acted spontaneously – if childishly – to your assumption of superiority of them, which is risible, and of your rudeness to me. It's what friends do; I presume you've never had the experience of having any to find out."

"I so will get you for that!" said Theodoric.

Biirta shrugged.

"Be careful what you try. You know how unequivocal the law is about interfering with exam students; and you will be an adult shortly too. I doubt you could touch me, but just in case, you have been warned."

Theodoric scowled. He ought to tell the head that the head girl's goblin goons had beaten on him but he was afraid of not being believed; and besides, it would mean admitting that he had been bested by goblins.

"Just be careful you don't get pregnant with your tame goblins; if you are you'll be expelled," he said.

"Now accusing me of sleeping around, and laying outside of the betrothal I have arranged at that, is fighting talk, Kranz, and I call duel on you," said Biirta.

He sneered.

"Why on earth would I fight a duel with you, Hess?" he said.

Biirta shrugged.

"Well, maybe you might consider it preferable to a report of slander going to the head, or to me asking my Anwalt to call on your father to sue for damages," she said.

"Your Anwalt? Don't make me laugh! You don't have an Anwalt!" said Theodoric.

"My betrothed husband, however, maintains a law firm on his pay roll, and is fond of litigation," said Biirta. "Of course, I can see why you do not wish to duel me; you are afraid, because you know how much better I am than you. However, I will accept an apology."

"If you think I'm going to apologise to the whoring trash that comes out of an orphanage…OW!"

Biirta slapped his face, hard.

"Your choice; the piste, or my betrothed's Anwalt," she said, coldly. "Because I just despise to take you to the head, as though I can't handle a slimy creature like you."

"Cream the little bastard, Biirta!" said Herman and Jurgen, almost in unison.

"You can't set an Anwalt on me!" whined Theodoric.

"Yes she can, and we all witnessed your slander," said Gauda. "And those of us in the Upper Sixth are over seventeen and able to give testimony. You have some balls, Theodoric; not many people would brave the English Malfoy family Anwalts, or Quaestors as I think they call them."

Theodoric went white.

"You volunteered for higher education," said Yrse. "And that means you agreed to join the caste who settle differences with duels. You'll suffer less in the long run; Biirta is not about to do anything to you that will stop you studying, whereas if you have a lawsuit against you, you might just get expelled."

"Oh, I suppose I can duel you, then," said Theodoric, making it sound like a favour.

"I suppose we'd better be his seconds, Herman and me," said Jurgen, glumly. "Nobody wants to, but he was at school with us."

"I'll have Gauda and Magda if you will act for me," said Biirta, "and you seconds had better get a professor to adjudicate."

"We don't need to involve grown-ups," said Theodoric, hastily.

"Oh, but we do; it's in the school rules," said Biirta. "All duels to be officiated by the staff to see that a piste is properly set up. I know how to do it, but I can see that it is improper for one principal to do so, especially if the other principal does not know how. Do you?"

"No," said Theodoric, sulkily.

"Moreover, we need a referee and the staff can be relied on to be impartial," said Biirta. "As nobody likes you, and as I appear to be moderately popular, it would be unfair to you to do otherwise."

Theodoric scowled.

"I don't want them putting the reason for it in a bad light and lying," he said.

"Man, if you start accusing your seconds of lying, you're going the right way about having to have staff assigned for that too, and they'll know what to think if we all refuse to act for you," said Herman.

"Well, you don't have to tell them what it's over," said Theodoric.

"Oh we'd hate to tell any of the staff that our principal has a nasty filthy mouth and tells dirty lies about his opponent," said Jurgen. "It throws our integrity into question for even acting for a piece of dirt like you, who has been giving the Berlin school a bad name since you arrived, throwing your weight around and doing as much as you can to do down goblins without it being something you can be caught out at. Don't think we haven't noticed. We're only acting for you out of affection for the Frauleins Mensch."

Theodoric had never given a thought to the sisters who ran the Berlin school; he saw them as servants from whom his parents bought education, and had only been cowed into not feeling the same about the professors here because they exuded an air of power, and were luminaries of Durmstrang, where only the best people went.

Herman and Gauda went directly to Wulf; and it may be said they told him the whole, so long as only Wulf Luytens was listening and the Headmaster was not. This was Herman's idea, as he had some, albeit nebulous, ambitions in politics once he had proved himself. Wulf himself came to officiate, and Theodoric paled.

"There is a grievance, I understand, that cannot be reconciled?" Wulf asked.

"Only if Kranz apologises quite abjectly for his words," said Biirta.

"Very well. I will draw up a piste," said Wulf.

"I release Kranz from any constraint over hurting an exam year student," said Biirta. "Because he hasn't a hope of hurting me anyway, but if he accidentally managed to, if I couldn't get out of it, my seconds are more than capable of doing so."

"So long as Herr Kranz is aware that Unforgivable curses in a duel are actually unforgivable," said Wulf.

"What do you take me for?" demanded Theodoric.

"Frankly? A rather silly and nasty little boy who may be spoiled enough to lose his temper and throw those spells with are not generally considered good taste," said Wulf. "Just bear in mind the rules and you should not go wrong."

Theodoric had never seen Biirta in real action with spells; she had subdued the Erumpent with some kind of cheating gardening trick, using soporific plants she must have stolen or bought. It did not occur to him that not only would that be against the rules, but that anyone competent could tailor plants to deliver a knockout draught. He did not rate Herbology as a skill for anyone but dippy women. Biirta had approached the problem as a competent potioneer and now adequate transfigurationist, and only wished she knew more Herbology than what she had picked up at the Symposium. She did not know the boy's capabilities, but worked on the principle that he talked a big talk and was laughed at by others who had trained with him and was therefore probably nothing special. She set up various shields, began a chant, and waited to take his measure.

Consequently, Theodoric started off with stinging hexes, and when that seemed to do nothing, tried the blasting curse. Biirta was expecting this, and leaped high in the air with a jumping charm to avoid it. Her shield would probably hold against it, but it was a professional duelling spell; Theodoric might not expect to duel, but he apparently followed the duelling on Wizarding Wireless, and maybe in person at the Berlin duelling pit.

Theodoric was by this time sporting the word 'liar' on his forehead, which he had not noticed, and was beginning to feel frustrated.

"_Torqueo_!" he shouted, using the spell which was only barely short of the Cruciatus Curse, permitted in German duelling under casuistry. Biirta described a mirror, and he fell down, losing control of the spell as its effects hit him.

"She cheated! She used the Cruciatus Curse!" he screamed.

"She used the Speculum charm to reflect what you cast, you nasty little boy," said Wulf. "A spell which should be banned, but as it is not, I will not disqualify you for casting it. You punished yourself, after all. Biirta, I don't have all day, can't you finish this?"

"As you suggest, Headmaster," said Biirta. "You will pardon me if I am not as fast as those to whom transfiguration comes readily."

"Of course," said Wulf.

Biirta absently flicked aside a couple more stinging hexes, and laid a lock on the diffusion grid she had chanted into existence early on – just in case – and with her shield charm held solidly began writing in runes in the air about Theodoric.

"What are you doing?" Theodoric was starting to panic; he was out of breath with effort, and yet Biirta showed no signs of tiring.

"That's for me to know, isn't it?" said Biirta. "If you were anything as special as you think, you could try legilimensy to find out, or actually, just read the runes."

"She's rather good," said Kole, who was the class specialist in runes. "I don't reckon Herman and Jurgen know enough to get him out of that."

"His family can afford curse breakers," said Wulf. "It's an interesting solution. But it shouldn't end the duel, he will still be able to fight."

Theodoric did not like the pain in his fingers and the way the piste was growing and he tried the blasting curse again. It bounced on the diffusion grid.

"What have you done?" he cried shrilly.

"Turned you into a goblin," said Biirta, "And if you can't notice, doesn't that prove, you idiot, that there's no real difference?"

"No, you can't do that, you may make me look like a goblin but you can't make a full transformation!" shouted Theodoric. He tried the Torturing curse again, and this time Biirta just ignored it. The diffusion grid was very useful.

Then she pointed her wand, and before Theodoric knew where he was he was bound, langlocked and with big green bats pouring out of his nose. Wulf started the count as the boy howled impotently and in a muffled way. And then Wulf was taking the piste down. Biirta smiled at Theodoric.

"Apology – accepted," she said.

"Who died and made you Darth Vader?" joked Ktell.

"I promoted myself," said Biirta. "Oh, and I'm taking Gauda, Gunnar, Ktell, Kole, Kasimir for the new ones in our year and to piss off his cousin, and Yrse in the lower sixth because I like the way she's handled coming here. Sorry I can't take the rest of you except the new goblin."

Jurgen and Herman undid the more obvious jinxes and decided to leave the word 'liar' in situ.

"We don't know enough runes and naming magic to undo him, sir," they reported to Wulf.

"It doesn't impair his ability to learn," said Wulf, "and Herr Kranz, if you don't stop swearing, you will be eating soap and sitting detention with me."

"But I'm not really a goblin, she can't!" wailed Theodoric. "It's impossible!"

"I really don't think that a half-baked little boy who did not even want to try for more ZPs has much idea of what is possible and what is not," said Wulf. "As you are not yet an adult, I shall remove the curse, when I have researched how to do it. I shouldn't think it will take me more than a week."

"But - have I got to look like this for a week? Do it quicker!" cried Theodoric.

"Boy, you are going the right way about making me forget all I knew about curse breaking and not doing it at all," growled Wulf. "In Durmstrang, you'd be expected to pay for a curse breaker. Live with it."

"I want to go home," said Theodoric.

"Oh, in that case, you parents can find you a curse breaker," said Wulf.

"I don't want to go home looking like this!" cried Theodoric.

"Then you had better ask the head girl nicely if she will take off the curse, hadn't you?" said Wulf.

"Take it off!" Theodoric shouted at Biirta, who turned to Gauda.

"What an ill bred little boy, who does not know any courtesy words or what asking nicely means," she said. "I hope he leaves soon; his ill natured face is so unsightly."

"PLEASE!" managed Theodoric.

"You want a curse removed by a whore of an orphan who sluts around with the goblins in the class? I'm surprised," said Biirta.

Wulf winced.

"If you said that, boy, you are lucky not to be facing a law suit," he said. "I suggest you apologise."

"I didn't mean it!" said Theodoric, who kept gazing in horror at his long goblin fingers. "I was sore that you were chosen, I didn't realise nobodies could be so hard!"

"Be aware, Theodoric," said Biirta, icily, "That my family was about on a par with yours until unfortunate circumstances robbed me of both my parents, and my next nearest relative was some second cousin called Helmut who was in Odessa. And being orphaned can happen to anyone. It does not automatically make those orphaned into thieves and whores. I will undo it on condition that you do stick by your promise to go home; I don't think the class can stick nearly two years of you."

"I want to go home," asseverated Theodoric.

Biirta promptly used wand writing to reverse the runic effect and Theodoric was crying tears of relief as his own shape and size were resumed.

He left later the same day.

That his grades did not come close to those of the two goblins in the class had been one of the main reasons, because he could not cope with being bested by what he saw as inferiors!

oOo

Duels were in fashion; Wulf and Jade had been in correspondence for some time with a German duellist, Gunnild Blitzendanz, who had been most impressed by Clovis Gierek and his class when they had taken a field trip to a duelling competition. Gunnild had been sending some of her winnings to sponsor children, and had made efforts to get to know goblins in order to support goblin rights, at first in response to the request made of her by Clovis as a return for healing her badly broken ankles, and later because she embraced the cause fully. Gunnild had, in fact, paid a Durmstrang dropout to teach basic skills to ZAP for goblins in Nüremberg though it did not have an accelerator class; and was finally coming to visit Schloss Adler.

The children were, of course, wildly excited to have someone famous coming to see them, before a rematch against Adolph Langstab, who had broken her ankles, since he had finally been restored from being the statue Clovis had left him being. Gunnild wanted to meet the children so that she knew them before leaving a will in the favour of the school, as she explained.

"That's a very defeatist attitude," said Jade, disapprovingly. "If we had fought Voldemort with that attitude, we should have lost."

Gunnild gasped.

"You have fought Voldemort?"

"Well, my sister and I were on the edge of things, hurling wandless spells and crockery at werewolves," said Jade. "We were preschool, and that's when we learned that you could do wandless magic with precision. The likelihood of being tortured to death concentrates the mind wonderfully, and Lydia and I practiced not screaming at the cruciatus curse cast on each other, and taught ourselves legilimensy and occlumensy so he couldn't get information from us. Our parents would have killed us rather than let him take us, of course, but kids don't think about that."

"Donner and Blitzen, what an awful childhood!" gasped Gunnild.

"Oh we didn't think it so," shrugged Jade. "We were loved, and that made all the difference. But we had rather abnormal upbringings, I suppose. But it is possible for you to win against the creep; you just need a bit more versatility in your defences, and a bit more fitness to hold them longer. Stay with us for a week or two, run in the mornings with us, and I'll teach you the diffusion grid. It breaks up the killing curse and negates the torture spell, as one of our sixth found out when a nasty little boy in the sixth, aspiring to be a wandless moppet in his attitude, used it on her, when she called duel on him for his insults. He has since returned home."

"I like the sound of that," said Gunnild.

"Well, it's partly because Clovis likes you and partly because we want a hero for the goblin kids to cheer for," said Jade. "And actually I like you too. We don't know an awful lot of duel level spells though; when we fight, it's usually for real, and we don't muck about. Though you might want to keep _durocorpus_ in mind; we use it a lot. A stone enemy can be stored for later questioning and he doesn't have to be fed or cared for, and if you just kill people, questioning them later is a little hard. But as a non-lethal spell it has its uses on the piste too."

"It was hilarious," said Gunnild.

"Why, though, was he so slow to be resored?" asked Wulf. "A simple application of Mandragora would have done so."

Gunnild laughed.

"It took more than a year for his manager to find that out," she said. "And then they had to get someone to brew it. He's in big trouble with those people who expected to make money off him for being the champion."

"Well, I hope you cream him," said Jade. "Creep like that deserves it."

Gunnild was duly introduced to the children, and made a big hit by not appearing to notice what race any of them were, though she did blink a little at Zaly and at little Lelli. However, she shrugged and treated them like their fellows, with offhand kindness and the school gave her kudos for cool.

Learning to run, and becoming acquainted with chanting were eye-openers for Gunnild, and she remarked to Jade,

"I had no idea how much there was that could be done; we were done down at Durmstrang!"

Jade shrugged.

"Odessa," she said, laconically. "It's much improved, though a smaller proportion of the kids run with the ECC; apparently it interferes with the lazy bloodsnobbishness of some."

Gunnild laughed a dry laugh.

"I can imagine," she said. "Langstab would be amongst them."

"Unlike his young cousin, who, as I understand, declares loudly that it's a different branch," said Jade. "It's a different atmosphere."

"Well, I may visit," said Gunnild. "I have learned much here, and I will, if it is permitted, sponsor any of the goblins in the school I set up to come here if they want to learn more."

"We'd be delighted to have them," said Jade, "and perhaps some will return to offer more subjects and perhaps to higher levels."

Gunnild pulled a face.

"My one teacher might not like that," she said. "She feels superior in having ZPs, and getting goblins to the ZAP is one thing. Having a colleague goblin with ZHs might erode her tolerance."

"She's welcome to do ZHs here if she likes; we won't quibble," said Jade. "We've had adults before."

"I'll put it to her," said Gunnild.

oOo

Gunnild went along as an extra adult to the Halloween gymkhana that seemed to have crept up on the school too fast this year. Magda, Kristel and Friedrich were the only seniors going, as they were not involved in the Triwizard at all, and Biirta contented herself with pulsing love to Lucius and the girls. Only one of the new first years was horsy, Vao gan Redo, who was to be given as much stability as possible, as the poor child was also a true seer who had sobbed his way through a waking dream about the evanesco place. Vao was a brave lad, however, who was soon under the wing of Berthold Falke, who, being horsy, was a big boy to turn to who was also a seer and who understood Vao's love for horses. Berthold firmly told both Vao and the plethora of female would-be marauders that Vao was perfect to Maraud. It made up for the fact that his brother Tolo had not been quite right to join Berthold's own group, and this made sense to the putative marauders as Nîn gan Gautic was with them, though her brother did not Maraud.

They made much of Vao, and gave him moral support in his riding endeavours, even Madelgarde, whose opinion of horses was that they were very expensive dung producers.

Prince Peak was not entering any Halloween meet this year, because of the need for constant vigilance against the Russians, and if the Schloss Adler riders were disappointed not to meet up with their counterparts in Prince Peak, at least there was young Heloise Kesselring to greet, and Lucius with Narcissa, albeit without horsy children for a few years to come. Lucius did not approve of children competing too young, and his selection of five year old riders would be a shock to the budding primadonnas in the infant class, in a few years time. As Ritter's father also agreed, only Heloise was along in that family.

The Kirsch family turned out to support their daughters, and to introduce them to the two new sisters they were adopting. Frau and Herr Kirsch had, of course been in correspondence with Kristel and Kornelia with regards to Emese1 and Elfriede, taken by Wulf and Jade from Heran's brothel. The Kirsch girls were very supportive, especially Kornelia who was a staunch Marauder and who loathed Wilga gan Heran. Emese was almost sixteen, and was named for her Hungarian mother, and Elfriede was two years younger. Now they were coming to terms with the terrible changes in their life over the last year or so, from losing their parents to kidnap and sale into a brothel, they were beginning to adjust to normality and the emergence of a period of unthinkable nightmare. Kornelia firmly hugged them both, and Kristel smiled shyly and said that the Yule holidays would give them more time to get to know their new sisters.

Being determinedly accepted by the girls they were nervous of made all the difference to Emese and Elfriede, and they cried a little, and confessed to not being horsy, but not minding horses and being happy to learn.

Kornelia was convinced both were Marauding material and was determined to talk her sister and Friedrich into Marauding too. If they belonged by Blood, they need never fear again.

The seniors were competing in the adult class for the first time, and were expecting to be thoroughly beaten by the likes of Lucius; though they acquitted themselves well, and were pleased to meet up too with Marius Schreiber, now with his family's law firm and specialising in horsy litigation as well as enjoying riding with the rich and famous.

Berthold's blue ribbons in both dressage and point-to-point were a bonus! And then there was a return to the castle to find that not only had the First Eagle Marauders, including Berthold, carved the pumpkin lanterns to decorate the feast, but had also enchanted them to sing a selection of goblin drinking songs, which became increasingly drunken in sound as the candles burned down. As the singing was activated by lighting the candles, so ruthlessly applied a piece of Waffling logic could not be taken exception to, as Wulf said, laughing.

"I wish I had come here to school," said Gunnild. "Children in the third did that? I'd be puzzled how to do it myself."

"Arithmancy," said Jade. "Can't beat it."

Gunnild, who had found Arithmancy involved in a selection of the jinxes the children had been teaching her, was beginning to agree.

1pronounced Emmashay.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapters 13**

The run-up to Yule was always going to involve a degree of silliness over who was going with whom to the ball. The dancing classes however did prevent some of the silliness, as dancing with a member of the opposite sex was no longer quite such an alien concept to the younger ball-goers.

The unpleasantness this year was around Genevieve Harris, and was none of her fault, which made a nice change. She and Cassius Prince were a definite item, and would be going together, and the once rather silly girl had calmed down no end. The unpleasantness came from Edward Kettleburn and Orlando Ogren, who had been, amongst others, so successfully cursed by the Pepperingye Marauders to find Genevieve sexually unattractive.

Genevieve's other swains had moved on and found other girlfriends, or had merely forgotten that they had in any way been attracted to her, but for some reason, the compulsion was still strong in this pair of eternal rivals; and Cassius Prince found himself waylaid by both of them.

"I say, Prince, you don't really want to go to the ball with that cow Harris," said Orlando.

"No, and if I was you, I'd ask Madam Hardbroom for an antidote to love potions," said Edward. "She's a poisonous bitch and has probably poisoned you, like she did all of us a couple of years back."

Both Edward and Orlando had to be rescued later by Madam McGonagall from being green, tentacled, bound, with bats pouring out of their noses and slugs crawling out from under their toenails and fingernails – most uncomfortable inside socks and shoes – because although Cassius was not the most creative of spellcasters normally, this WAS his girl they were talking about, and he was in the house of the slug-loving Kevin.

Madam McGonagall extracted the story and ticked the boys off royally for taking away the good name of a witch whose behaviour had been exemplary after her rather bad start.

They apologised but did not believe her.

Nathan assembled his fellows when the story reached him via Charis and Tobala, who had heard the royal Scots ticking off the boys had received.

"We'll have to decompulsify them," he said.

"Lumme," said Jingjie, "I say, if it's been maturing in what they laughingly refer to as their brains, do you think the decompulsifying – nice word – is going to need to apply Gollapott's second as well as first laws?"

"I don't do this potions lark, can someone remind me?" said Isambard. "if it's relevant to ritual which I'm not sure of."

"They're both OWL concepts you prune, so you ought to remember," said Nathan, "and I actually think that using Gollapott for curses might not be too far out; like potions, it's one of the subtle arts. The first law is that you have to equal or exceed the strength of the poison or potion, or curse, and I wouldn't mind betting as it was blended skills, it comes under the third law, which is NEWT, which is that it has to exceed the level of the original. And the second law is that some potions – or curses – increase in efficacy over time, and the antidote has to be exponential in value."

"Crumbs," said Isambard. "That's kinda heavy. Can't we just confund them?"

"That's what we are trying to do," said Nathan. "And because it was done with a letter, we have to de-do it with a letter."

"I love the way these Malfoy gits take liberties with the language," said Charis.

"It's part of our charm," said Nathan. "Oh well, I'm sure we know enough to do it without asking Lilith this time, anyway."

"I'd say I was a bit of an expert with written curses, actually," said Walter. "I made it my business to be, after getting over my own cursing."

"Brilliant!" said Nathan. "Lets go up to the Marauding room and look at the original we did and we'll brainstorm to produce another."

"Why don't we do it with a fidelius charm so that only those to whom it applies can read it, and use Finnish naming magic to make it those you affected in the first place – and do all of them just in case – and just have it really simple so that they are compelled to think no more nor less of Genevieve than anyone else they know slightly?" said Walter.

"I like," said Nathan.

The note was duly inscribed on the blackboard in the lower sixth prep room, as nobody who had been interested in Genevieve was a prefect, and therefore were not doing their prep in private studies.

The Pepperingye Marauders left it up while Kettleburn and Ogren goggled at it, and sundry others glanced curiously, and then the Marauders erased it when prep was over.

There was no more trouble.

oOo

A few quidditch matches were squeezed in on fine weekends, and when it sleeted lightly, Petrus pointed out that in Germany this was not even considered to be WEATHER, as weather was thick, white and blizzardy. Buoyed up by this, the Hufflepuff second team promptly creamed the demoralised Gryffindors, and Petrus was the house hero.

oOo

The end of term exams were of more interest to some of the members of the school than the shenanigans of the older ones. For all of the first, it was a matter of some urgency with those who cared to be in as many of the upper groups as possible of those who were split by ability. All except Andy, who had applied to do the exam for the second years as well. His classwork was well up to par, and as it was well known that he was having help from the Marauders of the second, David and Filius discussed it and duly agreed to permit it.

Others working for their remove were Andy's sister Amanda, and the entire of the blooded in the third. As they worked together to pull each other up, the staff had no hesitation in permitting them all to try the exams.

"Wee sumpfs, it means that the fourth will become outsize, and the third a trifle bald," said Minerva.

"Well, I don't think it will matter much, as they have chosen their electives," said David. "Not like coping with a huge number of first years."

"True," said Minerva.

This would mean Charis, Zeljeela, Candace, and Clymene in an already quite full Gryffindor, and Bryony, Tarquin Sevvy, Salazar, Naomi and Amanda in Slytherin, also rather full. For convenience they would, assuming they passed, remain in their current dormitories. And fortunate that Seth was laid back enough not to mind his little sister catching up with him. In fact, Seth was proud as punch when the ten made their remove and his little sister would now be studying alongside him. As would Niobe Cooper's sister Naomi; but Niobe freely admitted that Naomi was more academic than she, and grinned fiercely at her little sister.

"We can be like twins, now, and get to know each other even better, to catch up for the years Uncle Buckley stole!" she declared happily. Naomi leaned over to hug her; she had wondered how Niobe would take it, having once been rather uncertain of temperament!

"Does this mean we have to go to the Ball?" asked Salazar, in lively horror, as David announced the results of the end of term exams to those working to move up.

David grinned at him.

"You would be well served if I said 'yes', wouldn't you, you little horrors?" he said, genially. "As the remove takes effect after Yule, however, you need not. However, as Amanda has pulled up to her chronological age, you, my dear, are welcome to go to the ball."

"Outnumbered by a monstrous regiment of women as we are, by jove!" said Balthazar Kirke. "Just as well the others aren't coming, three boys wouldn't balance another seven girls!"

"Well at least you're one of the decent once who is likely to get a partner, old man," said Hasibul. Balthazar was exploring a tentative friendship with Hasibul as Balthazar fought his phobia of tigers. Watching them run and then joining the MSHG and staying at a distance at first, and the tigers in the school respecting his phobia, had helped him a lot. And the Weird Marauders gave him kudos for trying hard. He was a pleasant youth, and believed in principle in the rights of people who happened to be tigers, or anything else, and could not help a phobic reaction. Being also tall and handsome, many girls were likely to swoon over him.

Amanda was still young enough to think boys and dancing was a bit yucky; but as Balthazar came recommended by Marauders, she might do worse. She might not have made up her mind to join those who supported Marauding but the ideals attracted her.

Douglas Flint had other ideas; Amanda was Slytherin and she had not really had enough to do with him to know him very well, and therefore might not shrink from him as some of the girls did for his aggression. Douglas, however, exuded aggression from every pugnatious pore as he approached Amanda – or bore down on her, as she later described it – and the unmarauders who had just moved up smoothly interposed themselves between Douglas and Amanda, leaving Amanda to smile encouragingly at Balthazar.

Balthazar was quick to take advantage of encouragement, and by the time Douglas had negotiated a way around a selection of skilled irritants, Amanda had accepted Balthazar's invitation. They quickly discovered that neither of them liked Arithmancy, and that Balthazar was fascinated by the helicopters of Wizarding Whirligigs, so Amanda was able to tell him quite a lot.

oOo

The not-marauders now in the fourth had not pulled any japes, and considered that their promotion called for such jape-pulling. They had worked hard all term to make sure that they could do it; and now was time to let off steam. They invited Amanda to join them, on the principle that her oldest and youngest siblings were Marauders and doubtless they would manage to corrupt her to join either them, or the Weird Marauders."

"And as we're not Marauders, we don't have to be bound by Labyrinth," said Salazar.

"Just as well; I can't think of anything else to extract from it unless we fill the ballroom with bubbles," said Niobe. "And that's a bit tough on Zajala, oh hang on, as well as whatever we do, shall we suggest to her that she do the ballroom as a big bubble?"

"Brilliant," said Tarquin.

Briefly diverted, the ten new fourth-years ran off to find the head girl and inform her at the tops of their disparate voices what the perfect theme to the ball would be.

"And did you think I hadn't already thought of that, you horrible brats?" said Zajala.

"Oh, right, that's all right then," said Salazar. "We wondered if you'd been distracted by having to go to Beauxbatons for the stupid Triwizard Ball."

"Not hardly," scoffed Zajala. "It's just an extra ball on top of ours; and I don't have to decorate it, so I would care why?"

"Oh dear, it's bound to be twee," said Charis.

"Almost certainly," said Zajala "But if anyone plans on disrupting the tweeness it'll probably be Lilith; it's not my business to do so, because Beauxbatons are not the enemy. Now beat it; I have a bitch of a Transfigurations essay to do, and just because I'm only doing seven NEWTs doesn't mean I can afford to skimp. "

The ten left her to her Transfigurations. One almost forgot that Zajala was very nearly as academic as Gorbrin.

"We still don't have a jape," grumbled Bryony.

"We could, you know, do a Labyrinth one," said Tarquin, suddenly. "We could make the doorposts to the staffroom be those Telamones and not let the staff in until they did some kind of Waffling logic question."

"Now my head aches," said Amanda. "Besides, won't the staff be most frightfully put out about it?"

"We could do it to Ravenclaw tower," said Sevvy.

They looked on him with admiration.

"I like it a lot," said Naomi. "But doesn't everyone know that thing about one of us lies and one tells the truth?"

"Sure they do," said Salazar, "We need to come up with three or four new ones to rotate."

Amanda was not the only one groaning.

"Well, here's one I heard," said Bryony. "One of the guards explains that he always gives a number, and you have to answer it with another number. If he says six, the answer is three; if he says twelve, the answer is six, so what is the answer if he says ten?"

"Five," said everyone except Salazar.

"Three," said Salazar.

"Oh, did you know it?" asked Bryony.

"No, but if it's a riddle, it isn't going to be as simple as halfing it, is it?" said Salazar. "It's the number of letters in the first number."

"Nice one, Bryony, you caught me," said Tarquin, who hated being wrong.

"Good, that's one to use," said Salazar, "and I vote we use the 'one of us always lies' one as well because we need something to allow some of the Ravers in."

"So we need two more," said Charis. "Is the old St Ives one too much of a chestnut?"

"It is a bit," said Salazar, "besides, I can see Lilith arguing with them that one might have met the seven men and their seven wives and so on by overtaking them, and I can't take that this close to the end of term, she'd do calculations about Achilles and the tortoise or something."

The others laughed.

"I would't put it past Lilith to prove that black was white if she put her mind to it," said Sevvy.

"What about this?" asked Naomi. "There are three chasers in the all-school team, Tom, Dick and Harry. One is right-handed and one is left-handed and one is ambidextrous. They all put the quaffle through different hoops.

The Ravenclaw is next to the Gryffindor.

The left-hander puts it through the left hoop.

The Slytherin is Right-handed.

Harry is a Gryffindor.

Dick uses the hoop to the left of Tom.

Who puts it through the middle hoop?"

"She's taking clever pills," said Salazar with respect. "Either Tom or Dick is a Slytherin which means one of them at least is right handed. The other is the Ravenclaw. So either of them is in the middle and the left-hander is the Gryffindor Harry because he's next to the Ravenclaw. And the Ravenclaw is the one in the middle, but you've left out a clue as to which one it is."

"Bother," said Naomi. "Help me out, people!"

"Well, which one is the Slytherin?" asked Salazar.

"Tom," said Naomi.

"The Slytherin is named after a famous dark wizard?" suggested Sevvy.

"That kinda gives it away, but I guess it'll have to do," said Naomi. "Unless we can improve on it."

"Not without a couple more characteristics to each, and that'll make it cumbersome," volunteered Amanda. "Anyway, having questions above and beyond the call of whatever thrown at them ought to confuse most Ravers anyway."

"Point," said Naomi.

"Can we use a simple one that's so easy it might trip them up?" asked Amanda.

"Go ahead, if you have an idea," said Salazar.

"I sort of changed this one from a muggle riddle," said Amanda. "The aurors contact a man by floo and tell him that his wife has been murdered, and ask him to come to the crime scene as soon as possible. He drops the negating powder from nerveless fingers into the fire and gets on his broom and flies to the scene where the aurors arrest him and he is sent to Azhkaban. How did they know?"

Sevvy chuckled.

"Because the twazzock forgot to ask them where the crime scene was," he said.

"Oh, too easy," said Amanda, disappointed.

"Not necessarily," said Tarquin. "People who are too clever look for complex solutions."

"Oh well, that will do nicely I should think," said Salazar. "We'll catch a few of them."

"Most of the sixth I should think," said Tarquin, dryly. "What a drippy bunch they are! Right, library work to program in asking and interpreting answers because there's more than one way of putting them."

oOo

The extra riddle gate was a shock to many of the Ravenclaws, who had got used, on the whole, to the riddles of their eagle door knocker, which was reckoned by a good few of the Marauders to ask questions any drip could answer, and as Ravenclaws went through it, plenty of drips did. Filius Flitwick gave up worrying about having sundry of the Pepperingye Marauders, Stripy Marauders, Weird Marauders and even the putative Marauders in his house, they being the groups with Ravenclaw members. Flitwick was known to murmur that perhaps the Hat did not always do justice to some people, bearing in mind that some of the invaders were from Hufflepuff house. However, the purpose of the questions was more to make those passing think, than it was to bar those talented enough to pass it, and the spirit of a true Ravenclaw wished enlightenment to be spread widely.

Not all Ravenclaws saw it this way, and Randall Corner had often held forth that he wished that the door could ask harder questions.

It was Wendy Waffling who murmured something about people being careful what they wished for when discovering Randall virtually in tears for being unable to understand why the second number to ten should not be five. As neither Ingram Scrimgeor nor Ferdinand Belby were able to circumvent the door either, with any question, three members of the upper sixth found themselves barred from their own house, and went to Professor Flitwick to complain that the new security measures were a bit of an overkill.

Seeing Adam Gardiner stroll up, listen to the riddle of the murder suspect, laugh and whisper into the ear of the telamone doing the talking and then stroll through added insult to injury; a Huffer two years their junior had no right to be able to work riddles too complex for them!

Hot-tempered as Randall was, however, he had no intention of taking on this newest friend of Sextus Scarpin, whom he feared.

Filius had his first intimation that there were new riddles when the three complained, and came hotfoot to see what they might be.

"Ingenious! A bit obvious, but quite delightful!" he said.

"They aren't obvious at all, Professor!" protested Randall.

"Oh my dear boy! All of them are quite simple!" said Flitwick. "The originators have left plenty of clues!"

"I don't see how a series in which six is answered by three and twelve by six doesn't have five for ten," complained Randall.

"My dear boy! Instead of being fixated on Arithmancy, perhaps you should be thinking about the fact that it is couched in words!" said Flitwick, causing the penny to drop with a selection of faintly dissatisfied Ravenclaws and mystifying Randall even further.

Randall Corner spent the night sleeping in the sixth form common room. Filius Flitwick did not enlighten him; he should be able to get one of the four questions right, even if only by looking up previous Triwizard tasks. Filius was half inclined to keep the new door and add to its repertoire. He did ask for the originators, and when the ten presented themselves congratulated them.

"And thank you for making some of them more obvious," he said. "Who came up with the quidditch one? That's a new riddle, I think!"

"Me," said Naomi.

"My dear Miss Cooper! For someone considered by Madam Vector to be likely to make her hair greyer, that was a delightful piece of Waffling Logic!"

"It's the only Arithmancy I can do, Professor," said Naomi.

"Well, well, my dear, it's the one piece that is truly vital to spell design," said Flitwick, delighted. He did not bother to point out that it was NEWT level Arithmancy. These were Marauders after all, or the next thing to Marauders.

Wendy Waffling may have gloated over Randall's inability to do the riddles, but her sister Wanda was more compassionate – and, as Wendy said, did not have to be in a class with Randall – and she wrote out a list of the answers for those who struggled. It may be said that Randall was still arguing that the answer made no sense when he finally got back into his own house. The ten decided to remove their enchantments. Winding up the less able Ravenclaws was a fun hobby, but enough was enough. Flitwick sighed when he discovered that the new door had gone, but concurred that perhaps one could have too much of a good thing.

oOo

And the end of term was almost upon them, and the Yule Ball was to be enjoyed, or otherwise, by all the older ones. Zajala had great fun making a cross between the Hall of Mirrors – she claimed it was too many visits to France – and a soap bubble, so all was glass, in appearance, at least, but with unbreakable charms, and swirling soap bubble colours. The prefects, being in the know, had been buying diaphanous over-gowns dyed with the ever swirling colours of Kevin's slugs, to have a soap-bubble feel, and sundry Malfoys came as Jareth. Lilith and Sextus were in sage and silver, and proceeded to enchant their own soap bubble, and to use complex transfigurations to make it float about while they danced inside it. Zajala did not care that it was far more posy than anything she would think of doing; she was just happy to dance with Nigel. And if sundry Ravenclaws complained that they did not know how Snape and Scarpin did things like walk up invisible staircases, there were plenty of people who could point out that anyone who could not solve simple riddles should not be surprised to find themselves mystified by magic above that to be found in 'Witch and Kitchen' or other such publications. David and Ellie promptly produced their own soap bubble, just to show that other people than Snapes could manage this, even though they only took one dance in it.

It was voted to be a pretty setup for the ballroom, even by those who had no idea where the concept had come from, and were wondering why all the Marauders and sundry others were wearing grotesque Venetian masks.

It had been felt, by the Marauders, to be only right and proper; and they had bought in a bulk quantity of papier-mache masks to work with, via the internet. This caused sundry members of the MSHG to squeal with delight and ask to make their own, and the Marauders had passed them round happily.

It had even prevented too much end of term excess, so David considered it a very successful theme.

What the kapok-filled fish thought of it was not recorded, but everyone was so used to them that nobody even noticed dancing through a shoal of them any more. And if Isamabard Cooper's beaked and aggressive mask might be found the following morning lying in wait for the fish, having had its ribbons transfigured into a tail, well, that was par for the course. And at least Isambard was foiled in his attempts to turn it into a shark, owing to the efforts of a previous chanting exam class to exclude all sharks from the great hall.

The majority of the students went home for the holidays, leaving only those who were to dance at Beauxbatons.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

"I sorted out the mayhem in the hall, Headmistress," said Saxdred, cheerfully. "It wasn't as bad as it looked, just a few broken banisters on the gallery, and that section of balustrade where the suit of armour fell through."

"Really, I cannot think how it can have happened," sighed Agata. "Thank you, Saxdred."

"Oh, no trouble," said Saxdred. "I gather from your son that the feral desk was pursuing one of the suits of armour that had been, er, animated for some purpose."

Agata's eyes narrowed. She appreciated that Saxdred took the concept of feral desks and animated armour into his stride, but that he made guesses about Sigismund…

"What do you know that you call a child my son?" she almost snapped.

"Well, I might be off, but it's the way you look at him, Gnadige Frau," said Saxdred. "You look on the one who is supposed to be his sister with affection, but on Herr Toth with more. Is it a secret?"

Agata breathed careful deep breaths. It was no blackmail, it was no carelessness, it was just a matter of unusually good observation and cleverness. She looked anew on Saxdred.

"It's a secret," she said. "I could not keep him at the time; and he has parents who love him who are my cousins. And I would not want anyone to cause him trouble with accusations of favouritism."

"I noticed you were tougher on him than on the others," said Saxdred. "I won't mention it. Sorry I brought it up; he's an engaging tyke and I like him and all his friends. They're decent kids. They call me 'sir' or 'Herr Saxdred'. It's good to be treated like a person – like you do."

"I learned a few things about goblins that I didn't know," said Agata. "How did you come to be one of those who were in prison?" Saxdred had been one of the goblins provided to be used for the curses of the ZH level Dark Arts exam, and the charity Jade ran to find them jobs had fixed him up as the school handyman.

Saxdred shrugged.

"My boss was a cabinet maker who fiddled his income tax. It was assumed that as I was a goblin, I knew about it because goblins know about money. I didn't, as it happens; I'm no fool about money but I'm no accountant. I was doing cabinet making, and collecting a fraction of the price my human employer asked for my work. You pay me better as a general handyman, Gnadige Frau."

Agata snorted.

"Guilt by association; harsh, but I can't deny it happens. I'm sorry."

"Oh, I don't know that I am. I have a more entertaining job now, better pay, more job satisfaction, I pick up snippets of education and I get to admire my beautiful boss," said Saxdred.

Agata flushed.

"You're bold," she said.

He shrugged.

"I don't lie," he said.

"Well, perhaps you will bear a message to Herr Toth that if he and his friends would care to explain why an animated suit of armour was fleeing from the feral desk, I should like to hear it," she said.

oOo

"Well, you see, Ma'am, it was because the armour was importuning the desk to dance," said Sigismund, as he and the Musical Marauders stood warily in front of the headmistress, who was not in an Aunt Agata sort of mood.

"Why was the suit of armour dancing?" asked Agata. "I can't see the feral desk liking the idea of dancing any more than most fourth years, but at least most fourth years have a veneer of civilisation."

Bronislava giggled.

"So do the suits of armour, now, and it did say please," she said.

"WHAT are you horrors up to?" demanded Agata.

"Well, ma'am, as we were going to be stretched rather thin taking Broni to the ball we thought we'd get up the armour in drag," said Zoltan. Sometimes there was such a thing as not bothering to prevaricate. "It's not against the rules!"

Agata buried her head in her hands.

"Why me?" she asked of nobody in particular. "You WILL do your duty by dancing with other people who need asking or who ask."

"Yes, ma'am," they chorused.

"And where did you learn _piertotem locomotor?_" she asked.

"Library work," said Sigismund. "I say, will you put Saxdred in for a ZAP if we can bring him on far enough? He's awfully clever."

"Oh, you reprobates like him, do you?" said Agata.

"He has been showing us some goblin crafting magic," said Lindhard. "he knows some goblin metalcrafting because he used to add metal adjuncts to the furniture he used to make, and he knows some really good carpentry wheezes too."

"Well, get him to the level he needs to be and I'll talk to Jade," said Agata, recklessly. Saxdred was clever – if bold – and if he were legally wand-carrying his use as a handyman would increase. She would have to pay him more, of course, but it would be well worth it.

oOo

"You know, kid, your, er, friend is a lot more, well, human than our elves," said Antoinette Labellette to Valda.

"Wennie is learning to be free," said Valda. "Do you know about the curse on elves that feeds the fey?"

"Yes, but our elves are blood snobs," said Antoinette. "And actually, they are most awfully spiteful too."

"How do you know?" asked Valda. Antoinette shuffled.

"Papa was cursed to be an elf for a while, because we were all under a compulsion, by a real rotter," she said, "and the elves pretended not to know who he really was, and got a lot of retaliation in."

"I expect if you were all under a compulsion to be nasty, it seemed fair to them," squeaked Wennie. "I would like to HURT the mast- Herr Schutzstab because he is cruel, and it isn't fair."

"Are you sort of at school here?" asked Antoinette.

"That depends if you're going to make trouble about it," said Valda.

"Oh, I'm inclined to think that anything Achille Villeneuve thinks is right and proper is probably a load of old tripe," said Antoinette, "so it's fine with me. I reckon if more elves and goblins were educated, the nasty little _cochons_ who want to be supremacists wouldn't have as much chance. Including any Goblin and elf supremacists, because when they've been educated long enough I bet they'll try too."

Valda looked interested.

"Well, that's a good point, I suppose, especially if any try to use their fey connections to rally the fey," she said. "I'm glad I'm learning pattern magic, since I can't chant properly. The fey are scary."

"You wait until you learn more about them in Dark Arts higher up the school," said Antoinette with feeling.

"I don't think many elves will want to have anything to do with the fey," squeaked Wennie. "Some goblins might be daft enough but if we learns history, we'll know it's a really bad idea."

"I should think if everyone learned History and Dark Arts they'd know it was a bad idea, but some people just don't get it," said Antoinette.

They looked at each other and giggled.

"Harald Trollkettil," said Valda.

"Fortunately he's too stupid to be a leader," said Antoinette. "He can't even keep a quaffle out of the goal, never mind run any kind of successful coup."

It was perhaps unfortunate that Harald overheard the back end of this conversation, and as the two girls – he discounted the elf – were much younger than him and were not Marauders, he drew wand to fire rather dodgy hexes that approached the cruciatus curse at them. Fortunately, both belonged now to the ECC, and with the aid of Wennie's magic they managed to leave Harald sporting pustules that popped horribly, even if they could not manage the maggots, with his legs glued together and flobberworms instead of fingers. It was mostly Wennie, but Valda was not too bad at transfigurations, and had performed the spell of her life to alter his fingers; and Antoinette took chanting very seriously. Especially since she had received a friendly letter from some of the girls she had wand-burned in Beauxbatons, enclosing a magazine clipping of how Achille had been beset by hornets that these very girls had chanted up as a ritual sending. It was nice that they held no grudge, or rather, knew who to hold a grudge against!

Alexand subsequently discovered the helpless Harald, and undid his predicament.

"Who have you annoyed?" he asked mildly.

"I'm the victim!" declared Harald. "That rotten French girl in the fifth and Adelard's pet in the second were rude about me and then did this to me!"

"And you never did anything about them being rude, of course, that was outside of your remit?" asked Alexand.

Harald glared at him.

"I could cast _priori incantatem_ on your wand," said Alexand, "just to check, or we could maybe let the matter drop and you rise above the childish temptation to, er, get back at them."

Harald had no desire to have the last spell he cast revealed by the head boy, and sulkily muttered something about it not mattering.

Alexand let him go, but resolved to keep an eye on him.

oOo

Alexand thought he could do without problems like Harald when he had to both decorate the Great Hall for the ball at Durmstrang, AND attend the ball at Beauxbatons with the other contestants. He decided to ask the Handyman for ideas; Saxdred seemed quite sensible.

Saxdred considered. Alexand told him of previous themes, and asked if he had any ideas.

"Seems as though the head boy or girl uses themes from their own culture," said Saxdred, "well, apart from Herr Asimov, who by all accounts is a law unto himself."

Alexand grinned.

"That describes Zlatko rather well," he said. "I'm Austrian, so maybe doing it up as a chalet, with a zither band, carved and painted wood, and lederhosen is the way to go."

"See, Herr Amsel, you got there by yourself," said Saxdred.

"No I didn't, you hinted heavily," said Alexand, "for which I thank you, and I fear I can't give you any credit."

Saxdred shrugged.

"You give me the respect of asking my opinion, Herr Amsel; that's enough for me," he said. "I'll do you some fretwork decorations."

"You're a marvel," said Alexand. "Oh what a nuisance this Triwizard is!"

"Aye, and the head quite frazzled by it too," said Saxdred. "You and the others keep those blasted Russians in their place!"

"We shall," said Alexand, grimly. "We've got a large Russian contingent in the lower school and a lot of them are scared of being seized when they go home, though a lot can claim that as they don't have pure enough blood for the Pure Blood School they need to come to Durmstrang."

"I expect the head will need to do something about Russia soon," said Saxdred. "Will the English back her?"

"I reckon so; Professor Snape has been fighting them too," said Alexand. "Don't worry, Saxdred; if they invade again, the Marauders will hide you in the secret passages."

"THANK you, Herr Amsel, for your concern," said Saxdred, genuinely touched. "I have to say, I was wondering how I could fight; I'm part of Durmstrang too."

"You're a good man," said Alexand. Really, one did not even notice that Saxdred was a goblin when talking to him.

oOo

"Hallow isn't a write off, you know," said Vighard, to Zyrillis. "She really is cleverer than she looked in front of the visitors from Prince Peak. And she never joined the duelling club because she never joined anything. Just give her respect and don't assume you can smear her all over the floor. You probably CAN smear her all over the floor, but she was GOOD at Geomancy, and took to it like a duck to water. She studied hard enough to take the ZP in time to study ZH, because Arithmancy and all things related are her thing. She's also a decent potioneer."

"Crap at transfiguration though," said Zyrillis. "I appreciate. I won't get cocky."

"Not everyone can brave Atilla, I guess," said Vighard. "And she was in the habit of keeping her mouth shut. She had a lot of crap from the bullies for being English. Thing is, Atilla doesn't notice nationality, and she didn't speak out any, and it never occurred to him why. So she never got remedial help. And I wouldn't mind betting that she's been working on it. Because she hated having rhubarb fingers and would take herself away quietly to learn how to do it, and how to undo it."

"What a pity she has such a bad attitude," said Zyrillis.

Vighard shrugged.

"I suppose one thing I'm saying, as well as to be careful, is that maybe her bad attidude is from her background, like mine. I had to learn to change. If we're civil to her, maybe…maybe she'll change too."

"She'll be ruder and nastier," said Eve. "I had to learn to change too, and that's how I'd have covered any disquiet over what I was doing."

"Well, you're English AND female, and if the first is less alien than it used to be, the second is something none of us boys can ever comprehend," said Zyrillis. "Do you think we should try?"

"I can't stand the bitch, but I say we try," said Eve. "Because she's had a chance to see supremacists at least as bad as Durmstrang was when she first came here, and maybe she isn't liking it. I had no idea, and I came to Durmstrang when it had improved almost out of recognition, and believe me, that was enough to shock me."

"And you were a bitch of the first water," said Xanthippe.

"My twin is a tad blunt," said Xanthe.

"She's right, though," said Eve. "I really don't know what was going on in my head back then, but I suspect part of it was the old teenage complaint of raging hormones, the rest a feeling of insecurity of being a small fish in a largeish pool rather than my parents' princess, and all I could do is seek reasons to despise someone so I could feel bigger. Especially as I was rather a dunce in the class in Prince Peak, not, as my parents had assured me I would be, top of the class because I was so clever. And part of what helped was that I was NOT a dunce here, even in a bigger school."

"Severus does pick the best," said Xanthe. "I hate to think how many ZHs Zlatko would have ended up with if he'd gone there."

"More than would be wholesome without a good poking," giggled Xanthippe.

"Oy, drool over Zlatko on your own time, you owlglasses you," said Zyrillis. "Any constructive ideas?"

"I was shocked finally by the Russians," said Eve. "And I tell you what, she doesn't like Dolokhov one little bit. We need to observe and see if there's any way we can lean on her to realise what a falsehood her belief structure is. I don't say it's going to be easy, but I have to say I'm going to hope to run into her socially after school to carry on working on her."

"Good thought," said Vighard. "Marauding doesn't stop after leaving school."

oOo

The lower school were, on the whole, relatively well behaved. The excitement of the gymkhana had exhausted most of them of wanting to break out in mischief, and if there were the odd scuffles organised – usually – by Germans of pure blood to put the other nationalities in their places, there were enough Germans of a variety of blood purity ready to fight against them. And when Helmgar Nachteule and Fredegonda Tiefkessel tried to get up a German league in the first, and to bully Magda into taking her rightful pure-bred German place with them, and not with the Marauders, Ivaylo spoke nicely to the feral desk, as a friend of his brother. Shortly the two would-be supremacists found themselves well spanked by its wings, and fled blubbing before it. They were unfortunate enough to be chased right into the arms of Agata, who fixed the desk with a steely gaze and said,

"Desist!"

It worked for Salvia Pippin after all.

The desk recognised a mistress, and squatted, wings flapping gently and appealingly.

It did not take long for Agata to unravel the background of the furore, after the two claimed that that rotten Bulgarian kid had bullied them by setting the desk on them.

Agata raised an eyebrow.

"The feral desk has a mind of its own, I'm sure you provoked it," she said, wondering how anyone might manage to set the rather scary thing on anyone. "As for bullying, the only evidence I've seen of bullying in the first has come from you two."

"Well you would stick up for him, as you're only a filthy Hungarian," said Fredegonda, "and I've written to my grandfather to complain and to demand that that horrid boy Vighard have his prefectship taken away."

"Dear me, what a dirty little mouth you have, Fraulein Tiefkessel," said Agata, casting the saponification spell with a laconic twitch of one finger, since it really was not a spell requiring word or wand. "Your grandfather had the temerity to write to me over your outrageous demands about Herr Sternschuppe, and I wrote back to tell him how contumeliously arrogant I considered him to interfere in my choices of prefects. And I reminded him that if he managed to irritate me, I have been a duelling champion and I will not be afraid to challenge him to a duel if he cannot keep his stupid nose out of my business. I believe he may have written to the Governors as well, so you will be fortunate if he is not in need of dejinxing. The Governors take a very dim view of outsiders interfering in the school and its running."

Fredegonda missed some of this for bubbling furiously on the soap, but she did get that the headmistress was sneeringly indifferent to her important grandfather!

Fredegonda was determined to pay Agata back!

The next person on whom her gaze alighted was Saxdred, and she formulated a plan.

A letter was concocted – she involved Helmgar in the writing of it – and sent to the Governors.

oOo

Eduard Von Frettchen and the other governors turned up, and Fredegonda gloated.

Agata greeted them serenely.

"Now what lies has Fraulein Tiefkessel been telling?" she asked as she passed coffee.

"Oh, she's one of those, is she?" said Eduard.

"She wants to get back at me for not letting her run a junior Odessa, I think," said Agata. "I washed her dirty and lying mouth out with soap. She and her friend are trying to push the other nationalities around, and tried to threaten me with her grandfather in the ministry. We all know how much a position in the ministry means when the truly powerful are those who shape the ministry from behind the scenes and by holding the Governorship of this school."

"Quite so," said Eduard.

Agata turned to the red-faced Governor.

"Freiherr Von Teufel, were the divinations regarding your son able to bring about a reconciliation?" she asked.

Von Teufel broke into a smile.

"Yes, indeed, Frau Bacso, and am now proud to know my American grandchildren," he said. "You were perfectly correct to introduce Divination as a subject, and I withdraw any reservations I had."

"I am glad," said Agata. "Now what was the problem?"

"Fraulein Tiefkessel claims that you are having an affair with the goblin handyman," said Eduard.

"My goodness!" said Agata, mildly. "I'm not, as it happens, but even if I were, I fail to see what business it would be of a busy little girl; because if I was having an affair with anyone, she would have to have pried very closely into my private quarters. I am, as you know, Eduard, very discreet with my lovers."

"You should rephrase that, Agata; I was never brave enough to take you on, but it sounds as though you meant that I had," said Von Frettchen.

"I do apologise," said Agata. "Not that it did not cross my mind. But nobody has, I believe, ever suspected the two lovers I have taken during the time I have been teaching here, save that I spoke to you as a Governor over a small matter arising from one of them."

Eduard knew, being blooded, that Sigismund was Agata's son by Atilla.

"Yes, and I think you have always been discreet," he said.

"But if you took a goblin lover…" said Von Teufel.

"Plenty of prominent men have had goblin and half goblin lovers," said Eduard, dryly. "And plenty too are lost enough to shame to use goblin servants with or without their permission. I was merely concerned that Agata might have been less than discreet; my apologies, Agata."

"So I should hope," said Agata. "It is none of the business of the Governors nor of the schoolchildren unless any lover and I did it in the great hall and frightened the suits of armour. Whether I had a lover who was a goblin, pure blood human or troll. Though I suspect a troll lover might be too noisy to maintain discreetly. I have had no, er, horse-play with one of the forest centaurs either. If or when I decide to take a lover, the children will probably be the last to know, especially a pushy and uncultured brat like the Tiefkessel girl."

"Takes after her grandfather," said Von Teufel. "Wrote to me demanding to have a prefect removed as this boy wouldn't take the brat as a fag! I told him that if he didn't stop bothering me, I'd arrange to have a sending upon him that turned any beverage he touched into erumpent urine. There must be someone who can do it."

"Probably the choicer spirits in the fourth," said Agata dryly. "Please don't suggest it to them. They had Dolokhov's farts glowing over the Wizarding Wireless Vision, which is bad enough."

"Enterprising!" said Von Teufel, brightening. "I shall remember to ask them if they want to earn some pocket money if I want anyone cursed. Too old for the next Triwizard, alas."

"Technically, if he can be talked into staying on, Zoltan won't be," said Agata. "He's up a year to be with his half-brother."

"Well well! We might have the next Triwizard in the bag, as well as young Genauschüren looking a good likelihood for this one!" gloated Von Teufel.

"He's the same age as Lilith Snape," said Agata. "Better hope she doesn't stay on too."

"And my brother in law and ward and their reprobate friends in Prince Peak, who could probably also do your ritual sending," said Eduard. "Agata, what do you plan to do about this nasty little girl?"

"Caning her for telling lies comes to mind," said Agata, "Tempting as it is though, I'm inclined to just say and do nothing so she has no idea that the Governors would actually bother to turn out for anything so trivial. I suggest you make an inspection and we let her think it's all you came for."

"What a good idea," said Eduard. "Anything else gives her far too much importance. And I did argue that it was rather trivial to turn out over, even if you had been indiscreet; a quiet word would have been more effective."

"Well I didn't want it to get to the papers," said Von Teufel.

"Hmm, true enough," said Eduard. "I believe I might have a quiet word with Fraulein Tiefkessel to point out that whilst the governors did not feel it necessary to disturb the headmistress, slander was never attractive. I'll strap her on the hands of course," he added.

"The best of both worlds," said Agata. "Trust you, Eduard; you like to have your cake and eat it too, like Lucius Malfoy."

Eduard bowed, floridly.

oOo

The spot inspection by the Governors was nothing to take seriously, and Von Teufel thanked Salvia for training excellent diviners! He was inclined to want to grill Harmony Weasley rather hard, fearing that the English would not teach enough German history, and declared himself pleasantly surprised! Meanwhile, Eduard extracted Fredegonda, having demanded a female prefect as a chaperone, and tore her off several strips for not only telling lies, but for poking about in the headmistress's private quarters like a common thief, which she must have been doing to have made any assumption regarding Frau Bacso having a lover.

Fredegonda, in refuting this, found herself admitting that she had picked on Saxdred as the person most likely to shock everyone if he was having an_ affaire_ with the head, and there was nothing to say that a filthy Hungarian might not.

She had her mouth filled with soap again, twice, since Xanthippe was the chaperoning prefect and had no hesitation in dropping the spell even as Eduard cast it. Fredegonda sobbed soapily as Eduard whipped the palms of her hands with his belt.

"I missed that piece of mischief making," said Xanthippe, grimly. "I do have half an eye on this little madam. She's sore that the non-Germans of the first are more than a match for her and her little sidekick. Watching this one and her friend receiving a good spanking from the desk on fowl's legs was a treat."

"Well, thank you," said Eduard, though whether he thanked her for being there, or for sharing that story he did not say.

oOo

The end of term followed with almost indecent haste and Amsel's Austrian fairytale chalet was declared very pretty. The horror at the clanking of the terpsichorean teutonic templars was balm to the Musical Marauders.

"And it's almost worse that they have them in faultless evening gowns," groaned Alexand.

"It could have been worse; at least they taught them to dance properly," said Xanthe.

"It could have been better; the one in pink frills is flirting with Trollkettil," said Xanthippe. "No, I take that back, it IS better, how hilarious!"

Harald fled from the importunate cataphract, which mooned at him.

"Well, I'm cheered up before having to go to the formal French frou-frou party," said Zyrillis, who was laughing so hard he was crying.

It was something too to see the Headmistress accede to the dance request of the one male-attired suit of armour, the one with the corvus helm, and lead out with an impeccable tango.

The term came to an end with all due flourish.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15 **

"So have you decided who you are taking to the ball, this year, Pharamond?" asked Salomé d'Hautbois.

"Yes, I'm taking my fiancée," said Pharamond, absently.

The silence was very loud.

"I did not know you were engaged, Pharamond," said Salomé, after a long silence. "I had rather assumed that as we are good friends you would marry me, as it would be a suitable alliance."

Pharamond stared.

"I have never given you any reason to think of me in a romantic fashion; where has this idea come from?" he demanded. "I have never thought of you romantically any more than I have Abelard or Jean-Luc."

"You blow both ways?" Salomé looked shocked.

"No, but I count them friends in a sexless sort of way, which is how I count you," said Pharamond.

It was a mistake.

Salomé burst into tears.

"So is it not enough that we make beautiful music together?" she demanded through sobs.

Pharamond sighed, considered comforting her, and decided that if she had the hots for him, that was probably a bad idea. She would take it the wrong way and he would end up hurting her more.

"I like to play music with you," he said. "Whether you are male or female makes no difference to me in that. I like you. As a friend. I have no deeper feelings."

"I suppose you will marry Orlinda Schwalbe just because she is pure blood and mine is unproven," said Salomé.

"Why on earth should such a ridiculous idea make me marry one person over another? I'm going to marry the girl I love and her blood status is entirely immaterial to me."

"I cannot think who it can be, then; Hauvoise irritates you, Medé is a nothing sort of girl, Iona is cold…."

"It's no point listing the girls in our year, because it isn't any of them," said Pharamond, shortly.

"It isn't? then I am confused, for you have shown no friendship at all to any of the girls in the Premier, indeed you have never shown much closeness to any but me, why you even took the half-goblin brat to the ball last year so you did not have to declare your partialities!" said Salomé.

Pharamond sighed.

"I wish you will not call my fiancée a brat, Salomé," he said. "I did declare my partialities. I was not wholly sure then, but in the year since, I am. And I will marry Philomène Fileur and none other."

"But – what will your father say? You are from an old family!"

"My father is perfectly content with my choice; he is not such a fool as to consider it to make any difference."

"Do you then call me a fool?"

"You're the one acting like it," said Pharamond. "I have always liked you because you seemed so sensible, but if you are going to behave like an idiot like Hauvoise, I fear that friendship will end. And if you do anything spiteful to discommode Philomène, I will, so help me, jinx you so hard you'll need a cursebreaker to undo it. Not something to interfere with your exams, of course, but perhaps you will be more thoughtful if I make you into a half-goblin."

Pharamond was angry, and afraid for Philomène.

"You surely do not think I would do anything like that?" demanded Salomé.

"I did not think that you would come over all soppy at me, nor act the racist about Philomène; what then am I to think, when your whole personality has changed at me?" demanded Pharamond.

Salomé burst into noisier sobs.

"I am sorry, Pharamond, I am not really racist, I did not think you would take her seriously as a girlfriend because she is not well born, and you are from an old, proud family, and I w-wanted to marry you!" she cried. "I had always assumed our parents would arrange it; I asked my papa to speak to yours!"

Pharamond was glad that he had spoken to his parents of his attraction to Philomène, and that they had liked her, and approved her academic ambition, and that knowing Lucius Malfoy meant that they recognised that times had changed.

"My father has said nothing to me; but then he was aware that I was already romantically engaged," said Pharamond, who suspected that his parents had been expecting the letter he had sent, apprising them of his proposal to Philomène and her acceptance. "I expect that he wrote to your father explaining that he expected me to manage my own affairs and to choose my own bride. If, as I fear you may have done, you misled you parents into thinking there was attraction between us, your father might expect that to be a foregone conclusion. I am sorry you are hurt; but I reiterate, I have NEVER given you cause to think I like you better than any of my friends."

"Oh what a fool I have made of myself over you!" sobbed Salomé.

On due consideration, Pharamond thought it might be tactless to just say 'yes' and decided that perhaps the best policy was to make himself scarce and let her sob her way through such foolishness. Girls were very odd.

oOo

"Don't you go putting yourself forward and hanging around Pharamond Duval this year in the hopes he takes pity on you again, to dance with you," hissed Guillemete Araignée to Philomène.

"Too late, Spider-face," said Philomène. "He already asked me ages ago and I said yes. He doesn't even know you exist so I don't know why you're getting so exercised about it. You don't even belong to the ECC."

"I would not want to belong to your childish club, and he will know I exist because I am beautiful, not an ugly half-goblin like you!"

Philomène laughed in her face. She knew that Pharamond loved her; the blood-bond sang, and she could afford to merely laugh at such silliness.

Guillemete spat at her.

"How childish," said Philomène, dodging with the ease of long practice. She resolved to set up anti-tamper charms on all her clothes and other possessions; one like Guillemete was the kind of girl who would cast shrinking charms on a ball gown to make it hard to get into, and make the victim think she had got fat. She was also the type who might spoil schoolwork in the hopes of getting her victim excluded from the Ball as a matter of detention. It was laughable because although Guillemete had joined the chanting, and had persevered after a fashion she was never going to be the sort of girl Pharamond would even notice as existing as she did not put any effort into her work.

Well, it would be a long half term if Guillemete was trying to attract Pharamond; and Philomène sighed quietly and set about protecting her goods.

oOo

The three girls of the Champagne Marauders in the Troisième decided to take the sensible approach of drawing lots for who tied down such boys as they considered 'sensible'. Chantelle and Amelie therefore informed Jean-Luc and Abellard that fellow Marauders would be more convivial dance partners than anyone else, and Candide, who might be said to have drawn a short straw in having no other Marauder to go with unless she invited Quartième Armand, decided she preferred an older boy, and firmly asked Duran Tiefstern in the Seconde, because he was jolly, and belonged to the ECC, where too one might ask him without him being anywhere near dippy sorts of females.

All three male victims acquiesced to such unmaidenly boldness with deep relief that they were not having to do the asking. As many of the other girls in the Troisième were approaching the matter of gaining partners by casting coy looks and giggling, it proved, said Candide, that the direct method was always the best, and that next year, they might pick between Duran, and the two ECC boys in their own year, Yves Londobat and Sebastien Duplessis. Yves and Sebastien were kicking themselves for not getting in quicker when they finally got around to asking if any of the three sensible girls in their year were free, to be told loftily that they should have asked earlier.

oOo

Pharamond and friends had the task of decorating the ballroom in anticipation of the visitors of the other schools, and wished he could think of something both original and spectacular. He settled for Arthurian legend as his theme, which meant a lot of free rein and imagination could be drawn upon, with a magic well full of pumpkin juice, a chorus of singing Dryads, protective wards in Celtic knotwork – he wrote to the Marauders in Durmstrang and Prince Peak to ask for guidance in this, and incorporated the patterns they sent back – and a greenish colour theme to symbolise the Green Knight, which for the solstice was quite appropriate, with all the background of the beheading of the same leading to the new life as the seasons turned. It was a shame one might not re-enact it by beheading Dolokhov, but one could not have everything.

oOoOo

The Free School did not engage in the same sort of shenanigans – Abraxus' description – as the posh schools, because, as he also put it bluntly to the Sixth formers, the pupils of the Free School were expected to use their education to get decent jobs, not dance their way into a cushy number as a fully paid up layabout on the social circuit.

"What about those who don't need to be fully paid up layabouts?" asked Riker.

Abraxus grinned.

"Well, they still need to learn some social graces so as to catch a live one who can provide them with heirs, I suppose, and not to stand on too many feet. Balls are a marriage mart for the upper crust, and those whose social standing is marginal can often do well by meeting someone at school and marrying well, especially if they have done well enough at school to be approved. Unlike Durmstrang, where there's still some idea that blood counts for more than qualifications."

"So Storm and Zephyra have as good a chance as someone who is on the edges of the gentry?" asked Austin.

"Like the Burkes and the Bullivants? Yes," said Abraxus.

Jocelyne tossed her head.

"I am glad I did not sell out to have the chance of being a high class whore," she said.

"If I was you, Miss Todd, I'd be careful about saying anything derogatory like that," said Abraxus. "Getting married for mercenary reasons might be seen as long term lease rather than renting one's body, but there's no reason to suppose that either one of those girls won't make a marriage for love. They are clever and pleasant girls who have been able to make friends, which is usually a good start, especially when some of their friends have brothers. You may regret having failed to make enough of an impression to have gone with them early, and to deciding then to stay here in hopes of entering the Triwizard, but to make spiteful comments because of that is not in order."

Joceleyne flushed, angrily. She resented the luck Storm and Zephyra had had, without stopping to remember that they had made their own luck by having been friendly to the Hogwarts children at the celebration of what most people unofficially called the 'Voldy is Mouldy party'.

"What I wanted to see you lot about was," went on Abraxus, "because I volunteered to run the party this year, and generally we involve the upper sixth in choosing appropriate little gifts for all the younger ones."

Jocelyne tossed her head again.

"What a bore," she said. "Just give the brats sweeties."

"I'm so glad to know just how much you appreciated the thought that went into your yearly gifts from the school," said Abraxus, with heavy irony. "Well if you have better things to do with your time, I'm sure that Mr Shorg and Mr Crockford will help me better without your dubious input."

Jocelyne flounced off.

"Oh boy, how I itch to slap her," said Abraxus. "Damn, I shouldn't say that to pupils."

"It's all right, sir, you aren't the only one," said Riker. "Austin and I will be pleased to help."

Austin nodded agreement. He appreciated the little gifts through the years, and had noticed that those like his own family, who were better off, tended to get nice, but not always as costly gifts as those who needed them more; and to each according to their needs.

The party that the Free School ran was a street party, to which the families of the pupils were also invited, and which a selection of those who had passed up education managed to gatecrash for the free food. And in a way, that was acceptable, because it started to instil in those who were refuseniks that education brought more than parties, as all the children in the school were better fed, and walked taller for their accomplishments.

"Do we still have to go to the Triwizard Ball?" said Riker. "I mean, will they notice if we don't?"

"They will and you will go," said Abraxus. "Besides, why have I been busting a gut teaching you older ones to dance if you waste the opportunity of swanning about doing the courtly at Beauxbatons?"

Riker laughed. "Expecting us to sweep les mademoiselles off their feet, sir?" he said.

"Oh I'm sure you could go further and do worse; some of them are, by all accounts, fairly decent and not as dippy as you might expect," said Abraxus. "They had a year's training in how not to be dippy from England's own Darryl Zabini, and he's a Snape-in-law, which means he's not short of a brain cell or two."

"You know, sir, all sorts of prejudices of yours are hanging out," said Riker.

"So they are," said Abraxus.

It was jolly making choices of gifts for the younger ones, including such costly tools as a travelling potioneer's kit for a lad in the fifth who was likely to do very well in his potioneering, pens charmed to assist with spelling for those children who had come to literacy late, and even a few goblin toys from the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes branch in Obscura Alley. And winter cloaks each for the eighth and ninth children in a long family, whose own hand-me-down cloaks were so threadbare that the wind passed easily through them. The seventh child had had his cloak the year before. No child was forgotten, and all gifts were appropriate. Riker saw anew how much the professors cared for their impoverished charges, and was determined to do what he could to help give something back. And perhaps if he was earning a professor's pay himself next year he might sponsor a child. He had talked to Amarantha Keil about paying back her generosity to his siblings, and she had waved it away, saying that her loathsome dead husband had amassed a huge fortune, and nothing would displease him more than having it spent on part goblins. As she was employing a goblin factor to invest and increase her son's holdings, it was fair enough that she should have control of some at least of the money to do what was right.

Young Alaric Von Stern was being raised in the nursery of Professor Snape, and could therefore be expected to be raised with a good social conscience.

The street party would not have the sophistication of the balls at the posh schools either, consisting largely of about 100 yards of trestle tables groaning with food, and a goblin-made cracker for every place set – which was to say ten percent more than the legitimate number expected – with hogsheads of pumpkin juice and butterbeer, and nothing stronger in sight.

Of more immediate moment to most of the pupils would be their end of term exams, especially the first years, because the staff liked to know how well the children were doing. Exams here, as in other schools, were in the Yule and Summer terms, to test whether or not new ones were settling in by Yule, and how well the older ones had retained their education over the long holidays; and those at the end of the year to check whether the year had been used profitably or whether anyone might need to be offered remedial lessons over the holiday. The staff each worked for two weeks of the holiday providing such remedial lessons. For those who had started education at eleven years old and still functionally illiterate, it could mean the difference between keeping up and failing. The number was decreasing, since more parents were sending their children to the free preschool school to learn to read and write, and the four rules of number, and some basic spell definitions. Indeed, some parents considered this an adequate schooling, and sent their children out to work as soon as they turned eleven; but things would change.

And as term drew to a close, Riker and Austin enjoyed seeing the happy faces of the school children at the street party, so very different to those who still eschewed education or dared not brook their families to ask for it. And different too even to the way so many more had looked in the memories of these young adults, who could readily recall the inception of the Free School.

oOoOo

Rowan House, like the Free School, did not insist on a ball at Yule, but dancing classes were available for those siblings of Hogwarts pupils who wanted to learn, since there were those families who did not exclude squibs from the social round, and it might be supposed that muggles who formed alliances with squibs might want to know how to go on in wizarding society if they entered the fringes of it. Rowan House was becoming more a school for upper middle class goblin and part goblin families as well as for 'squibs and sibs', as the poorer adherents of the wizarding world attended the Free School, and Rowan had more social cachet. The train journey and the Hatting ceremony had rather fizzled out, but still the idea that it was an annexe to Hogwarts was a comfort to those goblin families whose offspring did not pass the basic entrance exam to Hogwarts. Which being so, its headmaster, the squib Anastasius Smith, was considering instituting a ball to train the youngsters in the social graces for those likely to be meeting with the likes of what he called the 'social also-rans' of the kind who attended Hellibore's academy, where being a squib would probably be hardly noticed.

This was an unkind and not entirely true assessment, but Anastasius was friendly with the Snapes.

This year there was to be an informal dance, and nobody need bother to choose partners in advance, but dance with whom they wished on the day, or disco dance to the music alone if they preferred.

"If we had to have partners, would you have been mine?" Harry Crockford asked Iphianira.

"I would, but I wouldn't want my parents to hear of it, because they'd probably have you killed," said Iphianira.

"When we're grown up, we can run away together," said Harry. "Perhaps your sister will help."

"Oh dear, I hope so," said Iphianira. "I don't think she'd approve though. But we're only twelve; a lot can happen in the next five years. And maybe Mr Malfoy will manage to find a cure for being squibs so we can do what we like, without the Ministry thinking we have to be treated like House Elves in need of protection."

oOoOo

The Cheestykrovy Schkola taught dancing formally, partly because Russians like dancing, and partly because dancing in set patterns formed some of the ritual on which they prided themselves. Aglaia was light enough on her feet, and was clever enough to associate the patterns in which they danced ritually with the patterns of ropes in knotwork, and to be able to work out other dancing patterns for herself accordingly. She did not share this with the dancing professor, a Ukrainian of uncertain temper who wore shoes a size too small to look as though he had tiny, neat feet. It did not, Aglaia thought, improve his disposition.

The ball was not something she was looking forward to; in her experience, in Durmstrang, the Triwizard champion of the school was a sought-after partner, to be feted, because it meant lifelong fame and financial inducements too in Germany, former Triwizard champions, even if not winners, getting preferential treatment. In England, the fame and the glory was held to be enough – a very English attitude, which Aglaia actually approved of – but the champion was still someone, and would be lionised by others. In the Russian school, Aglaia was almost a pariah for daring to be the best of those who went, even though she was only English. Aglaia was getting rather sick of Russian superiority. However, she pasted a polite smile on her face and intimated that she would be happy to dance with Fedya Chareekrovy, who was at least an academic's academic and would speak with her seriously enough about academic subjects. She did not know enough about the English wizarding world to label him 'a Ravenclaw's Ravenclaw' but it was an attitude she liked. She had picked him as one of those who would accompany her; technically she could take all but one, but had decided to take only four, which was her prerogative. She did not like the aggressive low cunning of Ephresinya Koovshina, nor the violence of Arkadi Volkhov. Kladvia Mesyatseva was inclined to take foolish risks. Of those she chose, Palagina Motyileka was well born and might be useful to her, Avdotya Byerozya had a witty tongue, and Valeska Selezova was efficient. And Fedya was academic. He cared not one whit about her nationality only that she was clever. A bit, she thought, like Zlatko Asimov, but without quite such a nasty tongue.

Fedya could, as it happened, have a nasty enough tongue, but he respected Aglaia Hallow's accomplishments well enough not to exert it on her. Besides, he wanted to learn more from her about the Geomancy that had been sufficient to make her the champion.

The term was long and tedious, and Aglaia survived it by throwing herself into work, and indulging in enough library work to impress any Marauder, had they known of it. Aglaia was entered as an external student in the NEWT in Geomancy – the German Ministry of Education would not accept entrants in to examinations if they had been expelled from Durmstrang – and she had to keep up her studies on her own. It took real work, as did studying Transfigurations on her own time, and which subject she was ready to pick Fedya's brains on as he picked hers on Geomancy. It was an alliance more than a friendship, but it was better than nothing.

And finally the term closed with the school ball before they might repair to Beauxbatons for the foolishness of an all-school ball with the contenders and their supporters.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

The research on opening up squibs was coming quite well, and a lot of what was being done was based on the chant to free house elves of the self-punishment curse, there being distinct similarities in the form of the cursing, as Severus saw, immediately he looked into it deeply. A complete genome of the Black family in descent of Marius the squib helped, since the family was more likely to throw up squibs, and, indeed, those marked as having no talent looked to carry one or more squib markers, which meant that there might be every possibility of awakening some talent in them at least. It certainly meant that Dudley Dursley's younger children, whose Malfoy magic lines were shorter than their half-brother Harry, might be awakened to full talent. This branch of the Black family had volunteered en masse for any experiments necessary, and Anastasia Kordach, who was marrying into it, had volunteered to add some of her personal fortune to research if it was necessary. It was not; Lucius was funding the whole, but it did her no harm in the eyes of her inlaws, who had been a trifle wary of Jordan Christie marrying the eldest child of the rather notorious Kordach. Jordan's little sister Martina, who was in the fourth year at Rowan House, could have every chance of catching up to do OWLs if her magic could be released, and his cousins Adam and Michael might be in time to enter Hogwarts properly at eleven. How well it might work for older members of the family remained to be seen.

Mafalda Prewett had been throwing herself into the research and had been heard to mutter that original research like this was what post graduate study was about, and the sooner she opened another branch by dislodging that old fool Corbin the better. Mafalda's parents had problems accepting equality of goblins and elves, and would probably, Mafalda confessed, have drowned a squib child at birth if they determined it to be so, and part of her drive was to understand genetics to show up their stupidity.

"You realise that in the face of determined prejudice, facts make very little difference to those who have made up their minds?" said Severus gently.

Mafalda pulled a face.

"I know more than most people, Severus; because I really, really despair about my parents. I tried and tried, but they could not see that I actually had more experience than them, because I'm younger. But you see, if it becomes accepted fact, because enough people have done research, surely then most people have to accept?"

Severus grimaced.

"It's proven over and over that there's no difference between a white, black or Asian person's brain, but that doesn't stop plenty of people, especially in the USA, and most particularly in the south, from using derogatory language and truly believing that blacks and Native Americans are inferior by right of birth," he said. "And you can have this ignorant hick of a farm boy who can't string a coherent sentence together, never mind spell his own name, who still truly believes he is inherently superior to a black man with a doctorate – a muggle qualification above the level ours reach, if you will, the equivalent to seven years on-job training – because of the colour of their skin. It's made worse because in the last 150 years America had black slaves, and we will suffer the same problem because of having elves as slaves. I can hope that slavery will quietly die out in England, which will make it easier than a forced emancipation, but we shall still suffer social problems."

"Why were our ancestors such dicks, Severus?" asked Mafalda.

"Good question," said Severus dryly. "And I do wonder if there was an outbreak of squibism which prompted the offer of house elves from the fey, while families were devastated with non magical members. Or maybe some community leaders were confunded and everyone else scrabbled to copy them. It happens."

"People are fools," said Mafalda.

"It's taken you eighteen years to realise that?" said Severus, dryly.

oOo

The Ubiquitous Marauders were a little distracted from research when Mischa Solvejov sent an appeal for aid.

Severus did not even bother to stop Zhenga, Wilhelm, Serrick, Alrik, Fyra and Bruno from apparating smoothly to the headquarters of the Order of the Dragon, where several Whitesnakes were busy trying to work in unwonted haste to exclude some three dozen inferii while Mischa was setting fire to them one by one.

"Someone is moderately competent in their necromancy," said Wilhelm, determined not to be afraid. They had no need to be; they had the blood group to draw on.

"Not in Voldemort's league though," said Zhenga, "He worked on the principle of hundreds of inferii, but the fishy little tyke was half undead so I suppose he was better able to control them."

"Like the Lich Abaris and his fifty," said Fyra.

"This is no place for children!" cried one of ths Whitesnakes.

"Yes it is," said Bruno. "Mischa called in the professionals."

"Bad boy," whispered Zhenga, taking Mihail Solvejov by the hand on one side, and Bruno, who was the nearest, on the other. They linked smoothly with the Great Snake, and then he was laughing with understanding of what they suggested, and began a chant to which the children added counterpoint.

The dealing of it had to come from Mihail, and the children let go of his hands and touched his robe instead, more for dramatic effect than because the link needed physical contact. Any wavering Whitesnakes had to be kept in order, and a little drama did no harm.

From the Great Snake's hands issued crackling bolts of lightning, and leapt from one to another of the inferii. The electrical charge disrupted the energy that bound the remains of souls into the dead bodies, and they fell, silently, just dead bodies slightly singed.

Zhenga wrinkled her nose.

"I think they smell worse after than before," she said. "Burned flesh AND charnel house reek."

"Well it was your idea, so stop moaning," said Wilhelm. "Can we have a crack at clearing some up?"

"I don't see why not," said Zhenga. The ubiquitous marauders concentrated on one at a time; it was Mischa after all who was the recipient of the power of most of the Prince Peak blood group, who came through the Ubiquitous Marauders.

The White Snakes were suitably awed.

"I don't know how to put in an undead exclusion line yet," said Zhenga, thoughtfully. "Severus does, though, shall I ask him to come and explain? I have a feeling there's something missing in the ritual there, but I don't know enough to say what. I expect Lilith would know," she added, just a little enviously.

"Lilith is a bit of a legend," said Mischa, dryly. "If Severus would be kind enough to pop in, I'd be grateful."

Severus apparated smoothly in, to the agitation of the Whitesnakes who were busy muttering that this was an anti-apparating zone.

Severus smiled at them benevolently.

"I can't help it if my understanding of ritual surpasses your ritual of exclusion," he said.

"How to make friends and influence people," said Wilhelm.

Severus Gibbesed him.

"The line of undead exclusion you rather fell apart putting up would have been probably sufficient to hold inferii, actually," said Severus, critically, using Scarpin's revellaspell on the efforts of the Whitesnakes, "but as you may be dealing with the Grand Necromancer of Russia, or whatever the nasty little creep styles himself, it might be as well to take it to deal with more powerful and harmful undead than such a minor threat."

"I confess, I am somewhat hazy about the more harmful forms," said Mischa. "I know about the lich Abaris, of course."

This was more than some of the Whitesnakes did, and they muttered in discontent.

"A lich is one of the minded undead, rather than mindless," said Severus; "And not usually a form that may be encountered as raised by a necromancer, but more likely the form taken by a necromancer to cheat death. Liches aren't very nice. They and Vampires are the main form of minded undead, and include the Japanese flying vampire. Inferii and the zombies of the Caribbean tradition are the undead most people may be expected to encounter, and are simple enough for any wizard with enough understanding to raise without going deeply and dangerously into necromancy. A skilled necromancer can bind muggle souls to make wights, a kind of semi-minded ghost; and depending on the tradition, there are variants of inferii or zombies with more or less independence of action, in that dead bodies or skeletons are re-animated with some kind of sentient drive. Most are mindless, but there's a wide band of those with more or less understanding. Did you really want a lecture?"

"I'd rather have an exclusion line first, if it's all the same to you, Severus," said Mihail.

Severus gave an austere smile.

"As the Russian supremacists have been known to tamper with demonology you'll want to put in an exclusion line for the more exotic types of fey, too, at some point," he said, "But we'll do this properly first. The Arithmancy of your people is faultless, by the way," he smiled approval on the Whitesnakes, and Zhenga heard one of them mutter that he felt like one of the notorious heamaster's pupils gaining a mark for effort more than achievement.

"What were we doing wrong?" asked another, giving a half resentful look at Zhenga.

"Oh, Zhenga was a little tactless, it's not wrong, just not complete. The child has a sense of ritual that resonates in her instinct beyond her education as yet," said Severus. "I believe one day she will surpass me at ritual, and possibly before she leaves my school. We do like to nurture all kinds of talent at Prince Peak."

"Professor Snape, that convinces me that you are a great man and no poseur," said the one who had muttered about feeling like a schoolchild. "If you can accept that one of your pupils may be greater than you and speak of that not with envy but what appears to be genuine pleasure, you are bigger than many. I have no more resentment towards you and your skill."

Severus bowed.

"May I be privileged to know the name of a man big enough to admit to having resented?" he asked.

"Oleksandr Fedirovitch Drach at your service," said the man, bowing.

"A patronymic for a patronymic," said Severus. "Severus, son of Tobias. A muggle."

Drach gasped.

"The English methods are indeed superior if half-breeds may be so powerful!" he declared.

"I'll take that without offence as it was not intended to be offensive," said Severus. "The English have done much research recently into heritance, and have shown that even the muggleborn may surpass pure-bred wizards because of the fortuitous nature of hybrid vigor, and the obscuring of some pure bred lines by squib markers. At Prince Peak we are working on a ritual to cure squibs, and even to remove the markers, which evidence suggests are curse-induced, even as is the subservience of house-elves, their unnatural form, and their self-punishment. If you are interested, you are welcome to return with me to Prince Peak to learn more."

"I would be honoured," said Drach. He was plainly another academic.

"Then if I may work first on your chant – it requires two more levels of complexity to reach up to exclude the minded undead," said Severus, "and as it appears you have not come across the likes of liches, I cannot fault you for leaving them out, as exclusion does require some understanding of what is being excluded."

"Perhaps we might ask you to be our guest and provide us with some lessons in the long holiday, Severus?" suggested Mihail.

Severus considered.

"All things being equal, I am sure my wives and I would be happy to help you," he said. "Those of my children who teach in my school are more than equal to dealing with any of the conceits of Prince Aleksandr and his shenanigans. Yes, that can be arranged," and he smiled his austere smile.

The Whitesnakes had not bargained for 'and wives' – or even 'and wife', and were not sure what to make of this.

"Ah yes, the daughter of Voldemort, an expert on spell design, and the most powerful free elf in the world, I am sure we shall all have much to learn from them, not least that English womanhood has a lot to teach Ukrainian womanhood," said Mihail, smoothly. "I am now seeing what you are doing, am I correct in thinking that a drummed counterpoint thus…." He clapped a rhythm, "…."would add?"

"I'd not necessarily have chosen drumming but it works very well," said Severus, "and if it works for you, it's the best way for you."

The Whitesnakes formed a ritual circle around the retreat, an ancient building nestling into a steep-sided valley, and looking much like an old Orthodox monastery, to hold the chant Severus had imposed on their own efforts. The Ubiquitous Marauders were told that they might support Mihail in his drumming and to otherwise stay out of the way.

"It's not so long since Samhain that His Murkiness might not want to look for the strongest life force to disrupt, that is a girl on the edge of puberty," said Severus.

"Oh that explains the timing," said Zhenga. "He used Samhain to collect all those inferii."

"Quite so," said Severus. "Now get inside the line and be good."

"Yes, sir," said Zhenga, dropping the little curtsey that was obligatory to the headmaster.

The ritual went ahead, and Zhenga noted that most of the Whitesnakes seemed at least to be men who were ready to watch and learn. Those that had left after the attempted coup had been those who wanted to use the Order for their own ends, and who were ambitious; those who were left were the academics.

"Well, I know a few people who will think necromancy is a short cut," said Drach, "and I wonder how well they will fair as minions of the Russian necromancer, and whether they will regret losing the patronage and protection of our little Father Mihail, who is powerful and has powerful friends?"

The question was largely rhetorical, but Zhenga chose to answer it, dropping a polite curtsey.

"Gospodin Drach, they will convince themselves that there is nothing to regret, for those who are inadequate enough to seek quick ways to power will not permit such matters as reality to intrude on their world-view. Quickly will they take to the Dark Arts, not in academic zeal, as may intrigue anyone, but as a means to increase themselves. And thus, because they are then controlled by the Dark Arts not in control of the study of them, they will become puppets of Darkness, unable in most cases to regret or repent their decisions. Because that would mean admitting that they have made a mistake, and when controlled by the Dark Arts, admitting to mistakes is seen as admitting weakness, and not permitted. Followers of the Dark Arts embrace its weaknesses you see," she added. "And the concept of being Right all the time is a weakness."

"I see," said Drach. "I will not oppose the entry of this child into the Order when she is of age, Great Snake: she is most insightful. I am sorry that I doubted."

"You will see much at Prince Peak that will delight you and intrigue you, Oleksandr," said Mischa. "I wager that some of these children have forgotten more about the Dark Arts without being touched by them, than Voldemort ever learned."

"I wouldn't go that far," said Severus. "You want someone like my daughter Jade or my postgraduate pupil Zlatko for that. And I knew Voldemort better than almost anyone," he added.

That reminder did make an impact. Severus Snape the Headmaster was also Severus Snape who had been Voldemort's right hand man whilst all the time he was planning that dark wizard's downfall. And to even survive that position was worthy of respect.

oOo

Oleksandr Drach settled in with the postgraduate students quite happily. He was questioning and receptive, and Severus suspected that he learned as much from the Asimov twins as from any formal instruction. He found the synthesis of muggle genetics and Malfoy lines a revelation, once he had got over his shock at the idea of using muggle sciences. Severus pointed out that goblin magic had been using muggle science alongside its unique abilities for years, and was discovering new ways to use it with new alloys for new, unique goblin metals, and Drach shrugged, accepted and learned. As Whitesnakes went, he was a young man, in his thirties.

"I've heard of the great chant to free house elves from compulsion, will this squib freeing chant be done the same way?" he asked.

Severus blinked.

"You know, Oleksandr, I hadn't thought about that," he said. "But I don't see why not. I was planning on trying it on a few first, and seeing how it went."

Drach nodded.

"Yes, it must be tested, and on volunteers," he said. "But it would be surely a better thing in the long run to do it as a big chant? If you have ways to increase the stamina to do so, which seems extraordinary to me that you were able to do it at all!"

"I like the way you ritualists think," said Severus. "As for the stamina, we in England have a saying in Latin: '_mens sana in corpore sano'_, a healthy mind in a healthy body. We run and do breathing exercises, and increase our stamina the muggle way, which is more efficient in the long run than borrowing power from the surroundings."

"This too I must study," said Drach, and promptly joined, on invitation, the MSHG.

oOo

Only the fourth years and above from Hellibore's academy joined Prince Peak for the ball. The rest were dismissed home early, since they would be less likely to be interested in the combined school ball.

Severus smiled grimly and did not mention that his pupils were remaining in school to be on overwatch against any attempts against either the school or the contestants at Beauxbatons during the all-schools ball.

Hellibore had six girls to his thirty boys this year, as there were four in the fourth; Severus had ten more girls than boys in his upper forms. As a response to Hellibore's greater deficiencies in evenness, Severus had decreed that there would be no formal partners, and that his girls were to accept dances from the Hellibore boys, even if they were clodhoppers, as Hette Breuer complained.

"Professor Hellibore has taken my advice and hired a dancing teacher from amongst the muggle relatives of the pupils of Rowan House," he told the school firmly. The teacher involved, a Madame Harmon, had been introduced to Casimir Malfoy, who had been happy to put 'Strictly Come Dancing' episodes onto 16mm film for projection by lumos spell to aid with the lessons. Severus hoped it might lead to less hacked shins and a tendency to what would be penalised in Quidditch as cobbing.

The four girls of the fourth were Jenyth La Folle, niece of Louisa, whom Severus claimed gave him grey hairs; Ismenia Bloom, a distant relative of Harmony Bloom-Weasley, Tansy White, who was horsy, and Felicity Quince, who had two left feet even when just walking. Severus cuffed some of his own boys for whispering that dancing with her was going to be dangerous, and issued orders that his own boys would behave as gentlemen and give her a dance or he'd know the reason why.

Felicity was going to have a better time than she anticipated, even if Tansy was cut out by Henik Borek, from the year above her, to talk horses. And if the Hellibore boys were inclined to laugh at her for acquiring a goblin for a partner, Tansy herself not only cared more about horses than humans, but also realised that anyone from Prince Peak was likely to have more social cachet than most people from Hellibore's. And Henik, adopted brother of wealthy Arbrek, was going to be a young man of some influence in Switzerland in the future. Henik was delighted to be in a position where he was able to dance and ride, after having been born with spinabifida, and counted his good fortune more in that, and in the blood bond with his adoptive brother and the blood group, than in wealth.

It may be said that Tansy was also commandeered by the horsy girls of the fifth, Cerellia and Sarah and Johanna, and the four had to be reminded that girls were in short supply, and yabbering about the gees – Crow Langstaffe's idiom – was not polite and would Henik mind passing his harem round a bit. Henik grinned and bowed to Jenyth La Folle, because she was the first girl he saw, and asked if she danced.

Jenyth was a girl of instant decision, and having no side to her at all, said 'yes' because the boy seemed popular with his fellows.

"What's your favourite class?" she asked.

"Arithmancy," said Henik. "I'm going to study a bit of Art in Magic to go with it, more for pattern magic and curse breaking though, I'm not a real artist like Sarah, but she's going to help me a bit."

"You get to study art here?" asked Jenyth.

"Oh yes, it's a talent that can't really be ignored," said Henik. "Some people can do a kind of Protean Charm thing by drawing something and changing it, and some people can predict the future by having a drawing fit, but those are way special skills. You need talent to make proper moving pictures or statues, but someone with perseverance like me can learn the pattern side of it. I wasn't planning on taking an OWL in it though, just learning a bit."

"There's an OWL in art?" Jenyth sounded yearning.

"And a NEWT," said Henik. "I say, are you an artist and you parents didn't have the sense to send you here where we specialise?"

"My parents see it as a nice hobby for me," said Jenyth, "and they didn't send me here because my Aunt Louisa left after OWLs and didn't seem to get anything much out of schooling, and I'm going to meet nicer people at Hellibores where there are no goblins. I think my parents are scared of goblins or something."

"Oh," said Henik. "Well if your aunt left after OWLs, even if Professor Snape had taken over then, I bet she was a Cackle's girl through and through; and we only lost the last of those last year, though they didn't half pull up their game, from what I've heard. And the Art class is a serious class, even though all the artists study together, because you can count the truly talented on the fingers of one hand. Roseli, Sarah, Werner, Paul, Reaz, though he studies from interest not talent, Jöran, Gudel, Radagas and Zenz. Well, the fingers of both hands, then," he grinned.

"Some of them have awfully funny names," said Jenyth.

"Not if you're from their countries," said Henik. Jenyth blushed.

"I didn't mean to be rude," she said. "I will write to my parents and tell them; though I don't suppose it will make any difference."

"They might pay for you to apparate over once a week for the lesson," said Henik, "if they feel that moving you would disturb your other school work."

"I can ask," said Jenyth.

Meanwhile, Harmony Bloom-Weasley, who had firmly told Agata Bacso that she planned on dancing with her husband at the Prince Peak ball and refused to have anything to do with the Durmstrang ball, had acquired a hero-worshipping cousin in the person of Ismenia Bloom. Harmony privately considered the child less mature and able than her namesake, small Ismenia Parnassus-Snape, who was just turned nine, but smiled kindly on her anyway. When Ismenia discovered that Harmony was not teaching here but at Durmstrang, she looked horrified.

"But isn't it SCARY, cousin Harmony?" she gasped.

"Not at all," said Harmony. "After all, there have been no overt attacks on the school whilst I have been there, though I've been part of fighting off quite a few here, since I came as a schoolgirl hardly any older than you."

"I thought Durmstrang was most awfully rough; I didn't know anyone attacked SCHOOLS," said Ismenia.

Harmony counted silently to ten.

"Oh, we have had a few supremacists who thought that by stealing control of schools, they could train up brainwashed troops for the future," she said.

"Do you think they'll attack OUR school?" gasped Ismenia.

"I doubt it, they prefer schools which strive for academic excellence," said Harmony, without thinking.

"What do you mean?" asked Ismenia.

Harmony sighed.

"Your parents have chosen for you a school where you might make certain social contacts, rather than one which expects you to work hard to attain ten OWLs and four or more NEWTs," she said.

"Gosh! Is that possible?" demanded Ismenia.

"Well I admit I only have nine OWLs, and only three at 'O', but I have five good NEWTs, my good kiddy, even if three are only at 'E' and two at O'," said Harmony, waspishly. "Of course it's possible; but not without a lot of hard work. I don't like having my word doubted."

"Oh I never meant to doubt your word, Cousin Harmony!" cried Ismenia. "It just seems such an impossible amount of hard work! I shall hope to pass at least five OWLS, but I'm not sure I'll get any more, and anyone who is taking three NEWTs is reckoned a high flyer!"

Harmony did not say that this is why Hellibore's did not usually shine in such things as Triwizard competitions, nor produce wizards who wrote for learned publications. She managed a smile.

"Well, to each their own," she said. "You might prefer a more relaxed school such as you are in to one which makes sure you turn in decent work for your three and a half hours preparation every night."

"Th-three and a half hours? I'd just DIE!" declared Ismenia.

Harmony reflected dryly to herself that the Cackle girls had expressed similar feelings of dismay when they found out that they were expected to do preparation to that degree by the time they were studying electives. Not that they had had such things as electives in the rather limited school they had had before. She managed to escape Ismenia, who would be, said Harmony severely, in demand for the dancing.

It was noticeable that Felicity had polite offers to dance for every dance from Prince Peak boys; and that the Hellibore boys avoided her. She was a clumsy child without much conversation, beyond repeating such gossip as she knew, which was of little interest to her partners, but at least they were well enough trained not to show that they would be bored if they were not concentrating hard on not being kicked and stood on. Fortunately the training at Prince Peak was so ingrained that the boys were able to avoid most of the excesses of a bad dancer, and Felicity was to go home to her parents to tell them that the goblins of Prince Peak behaved more like gentlemen than the humans of Hellibore's.

As to the two older girls of Hellibore's, Bettany Plank was a pleasant girl who was relieved not to have to be doing as much schoolwork as the Prince Peak crowd seemed to do; and Orella Feverfew who considered Quidditch the only subject worth talking about, and especially how good she looked on a broom. And Severus had to cuff George Ingate for exchanging a very coarse comment with Fred Visick.

On the whole, however, a good time was had by all, and the Hellibore boys were not quite such dire dancers as they had been the previous year,so there was no need for Quidpot armour, which Vya had jokingly suggested. And Flo made sure to firmly sort out couples if the dancing seemed to be flagging, so that everyone danced most of the dances, even if the female staff found themselves rather overwhelmed – or as Krait said dryly, underwhelmed – by the attentions of teenage idiots. And if Ulysses Hobday was sporting zits saying "I must not grope teachers" it was his own fault for not removing his hand when Krait told him to, as he had mistaken her for a fourth year who might be bullied into compliance. And at that, as Krait said, he was lucky to meet someone old enough to be restrained and not one of their fourth year girls.

Krait refused to remove it, and a resigned Englebert Hellibore murmured that it was as well that Hobday was not going to be one of those attending the combined school ball. Hellibore actually thought it would serve Hobday right to have to explain that to his parents – Krait said she thought it would do in lieu of having the bother of reading lines if she set them – as they took no notice of complaints about the rude behaviour of their son. A rebuke from the niece of Lucius Malfoy might have meaning for them.

And the term broke up for most children, and just the anticipation of one more ball for those who were going, which as Yrdl said was a tedious duty, but at least they could show up everyone else by making sure they were all better dancers.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

As Gunnild Blitzendanz had become almost an old girl of Schloss Adler for spending time there, Wulf decided that he would take the combined sixth, who were interested, to watch her duel against Adolf Langstab. Adolf was desperate to regain his title, having spent a year out of duelling, and without the enjoyment he might have had for the time he was champion in having been a statue, and this match was one of the early rounds to see which German duellists went through, and would be determined on overall points. Gunnild had always run second to Adolf, and was hoping to accrue enough points this time, and deprive him of enough, to go through, and maybe seen him pushed into third place. She had spoken long with Biirta and with Jade about the diffusion grid, and was certain she could get it into place in time before Langstab began to use his signature curse. And as Langstab was the kind who hated reverses, he might even be tempted to try something like the killing curse, when having a protection from that might be quite useful.

"It will be rowdy," said Wulf to his sixth formers.

"We ought to go to support Gunnild," said Kristel, generally the gentle one.

"We won't let anyone hurt you," said Biirta.

"What will they make of us being mixed race?" asked Herman. "I've been to a few duels, and goblins are generally one side of a barrier, humans the other."

"I hired a block of twenty four seats on behalf of a school and didn't tell them," said Wulf. "There's twenty of you, and I thought I'd fill any extra seats with staff to make sure we have no trouble. And the Junior head isn't coming; she's too hot-headed."

Those who knew Jade of old laughed. They had heard from Gunnild how both the Spaniard and this Langstab she hated had challenged the Dark Arts teacher in Durmstrang, a friend of their own staff, because comments of his had carried unintentionally. And Jade was quite likely to make an audible running commentary disparaging duelling as a sport. Which was, they reflected, fair enough, since her earliest introduction to duelling had been preschool, and in deadly earnest against the likes of werewolves.

Wulf had decided to take the most dangerous members of staff outside of Jade, who also knew her own flaws and admitted to being likely to taunt Langstab just for the fun of turning him into stone again. Accordingly he would take Ritter Kesselring, which would please Magda, Mortimer Bane, who would irritate anyone who did not like part goblins, and Leo Black-Weasley. Leo's new wife Drusillina was teaching some of those adult goblins who hoped to gain ZAP or better as nurses or healers in St Bernard's or helping Franziska Schiff bring on the older orphans. As they had her available, it seemed like a good idea not to waste her talents. As they expanded, and the orphans needed less bringing on, both would be able to slot in as people like Bertel Elstrup left to found their own schools. Franziska was better at Runes than he was anyway; and Drusillina could take on Potions if, as seemed likely, Ihor Rebet moved to be headmaster of a school in the Ukraine under the auspices of the Order of the Dragon.

Drusillina had no interest in accompanying her husband to the duel; as she said, she had been to Hogwarts, where the level of corridor curses used could take out most idiot duellists anyway.

She might not, thought Wulf, be far from the truth at that. Certainly the Belle Marauders had been at Hogwarts at the time of Achille Crouch-Villeneuve, who considered the Cruciatus Curse a suitable corridor curse.

These qualifying rounds would probably not attract too many spectators, and took place over several days, each pair scheduled for a particular time, so that it was easy enough to book seats for, and turn up at, any particular duel. This one would be more highly subscribed than most, being a grudge match, because of the history between the competitors, but money talked, and Wulf managed to obtain two adjoining boxes. It would be snug, but safer than open seats.

They filed in, neat in gentian and red uniforms, attracting looks ranging from envy to disgust at their mixed race and sleek, well-fed confidence. The more sombrely clad professors were given a wide berth by anyone with any sense. This did not include the goblin tout, who seemed to think that having goblins in the party gave him leave to push in and start trying to sell odds.

Wulf was about to intervene, when Biirta beckoned the man.

"Yes, Gracious Witch?" he said.

"Please piss off," said Biirta, in Gobbledegook. "We're here to support a friend, not to bet," she added.

"Sorry, Gracious Witch," said the goblin, backing off hastily. Humans had no business speaking Gobbledegook, even badly!

"If you hadn't pushed in, she'd have been politer," said Ktell, in German. "Word to the wise. Besides we already have money on Gunnild on an accumulator."

The goblin looked up at Biirta; saw that she was not sneering, gave her and Ktell a half salute, and faded out of the way.

"Wise move," said Wulf. "You take liberties; then that little creep with the green hat selling souvenirs tries to take liberties and then half the world and his wife try to irritate my students. You don't want to see my students irritated."

The goblin glanced over, noted that the little creep indicated was human, and gave a half grin. The school really was equal.

"Ktell," said Wulf, "DO we have money on Gunnild on an accumulator?"

"Yessir. We pooled everything we had and asked Herr Schiff to go into Berlin to put it on for us," said Ktell. "And I wrote down what everyone put in so we can pay out in kind. He got thirty to one on Gunnild winning this match, and it improves as it goes."

"Well, I suppose you are of age," said Wulf.

"We thought it was our best chance of capital behind us without borrowing, and partly from our own work because we helped train her," said Ktell.

"Well, when you put it that way…." Wulf said ruefully.

There was little time for pre-match importunities; Wulf had cut it fine to make sure of that. The referee and the two contestants were coming out.

Adolf Langstab was sneering.

"I don't know why you don't just resign, Blitzendanz," he said. "You've lost to me all your life since we were at school. Resign now and save yourself pain."

"In your dreams," said Gunnild. "I believe I've learned a lot since we last met. I admit I had more time than you, because your seconds are too stupid to be able to work out to use Mandragora on a statue, but there! I doubt you could learn anything much."

"I know all there is to know about duelling," said Langstab, clearly missing the point. "I need to learn nothing more!"

"Except when facing schoolteachers of course," said Gunnild.

"He must have cheated!" said Langstab.

"I think that was the excuse Odessa used for failing consistently to win against various schools too," said Gunnild, "that being better than them was somehow cheating, and if you go for your wand before we are on the piste, it's an automatic disqualification for you and I so want to show you all I've learned."

The crowd were delighted, and someone started a supportive chant for Gunnild. As it wasn't them, Wulf nodded that the combined sixth might join it.

They did.

And Wulf did check to make sure some of the subtler of his big little monkeys weren't using it to feed Gunnild power. Fortunately, Biirta had regretfully thought of, and discarded the idea. If he had been a proven supremacist icon that would have been a different matter; if, say, he was a leader of some group like the Quidditch player who had duelled Darryl. But he was only ever a nasty creep.

The pair mounted the piste, and the referee started the match; and Gunnild waved her wand lazily and managed to cast the bat bogey hex with her off hand, no mean feat when concentrating on building a diffusion grid. She danced out of the way of a stinging hex, and blocked a second, and dodged again to avoid the blasting curse. Langstab was distracted by the bats – she had managed to draw out seven - and was not concentrating as fully. The last bat crawled out of his nose as Gunnild had the diffusion grid in place, and she used the shield charm to apparently block his blasting curse. She had always been a crowd pleaser with amusing corridor-level curses, and now she added those that she had learned from the children of Schloss Adler, who had learned them from Marauding counterparts in Prince Peak and Durmstrang. Adolf Langstab did not like being subject to the anal bagpipe curse, the jellied furnunculous curse and the maggot-popping-pustule curse. There were cries of horrified delight as he spewed maggots which were intoning songs about stirring their cauldron hard in horrid counterpoint to his rear playing an anthem of Odessa. Apparently Gunnild had no doubts as to his affiliations.

"_Torqueo_!" screeched Langstab, levelling his wand at Gunnild.

Gunnild ignored him.

His nose now produced small blue birds suggesting with much vibrato that he should fly them like a broom, higher than the moon. Gunnild's feelings for Katti Krächzen as a dark creature evidently tallied with those of the Marauding children; either that or more likely they had introduced her to the concept. Wulf chuckled. If they were vibrating that much inside his nose it must be quite uncomfortable.

Langstab's feet now started producing Viennese waltzes and as his legs were glued together, he was trying to waltz from the ankles down with a most ingenious twist of the Tarantallegra curse which Wulf noted down for later study. Gunnild's wand work was meticulous and economic of movement, a paradigm of efficiency. Nothing he was casting was touching Gunnild, and he was furiously throwing blasting curses and the not-cruciatus curse. And nothing happened bar Gunnild smiling gently.

"I told you I'd been learning. Defensive spells as well as offensive," she said.

"Well here's one there's no defence to, bitch!" screeched Langstab, brushing aside crooning blue birds. "_Avada Kedavra_!"

The audience screamed in real terror. Duellists being hurt, or even dying of wounds was something they were quite complacent about. The Killing Curse was something instilled into the wizarding psyche – apart from those trained by Odessa at Durmstrang – as unthinkable.

And Gunnild still stood there as the wash of green hit the diffusion grid and dispersed. She was grinning.

"Maybe I should have mentioned I took a course in English spellcasting," she said. "Now the match belongs to me, because you are disqualified but I haven't finished with YOU yet."

Gunnild unglued his legs and with a neat twist of the wand used _durocorpus_ wordlessly, so as not to give it away, as he was at the silliest position between glued and waltzing, and managed to catch a bird in the act of emerging from his nose. Wulf reflected that she must have cursed him to have extra snot to get so much out of his nose. The excess music was suddenly and frighteningly quiet.

"I do not need the count as I win by opponent disqualification but I would wish it for the formality," said Gunnild.

The referee gave the count.

"Fraulein Blitzendanz, that looked like the killing curse, but how can I record a disqualification, as there is no counter to the killing curse, and you are still alive?" he asked.

"But there is a counter to the killing curse," said Gunnild, "and I have been privileged to have been taught it by no less than Nefrita Von Strang und Luytens who suspected that this _schweinehund_ might just use it on the piste. That it also counters the torturing curse is an added bonus. I wonder if they saved any mandragora? I hope someone takes a picture before they dose him, I am so looking forward to making a collection of pictures of Adolf Langstab as different statues."

The crowd loved this sally, which was more than Langstab's seconds and manager did. If the look the manager gave Langstab was anything to go by, he was unlikely to ever be given mandragora. A duellist who cast unforgivable curses was effectively out of the sport; and that meant his team were out of the money. Langstab was worth more as a piece of amusing statuary than he was as a duellist.

Gunnild had no problems with that concept at all.

And she had every chance of good winnings now to give back to that wonderful school!

oOo

Schloss Adler ran Divination as ruthlessly as Durmstrang, and from the Diviners there, similar results were returning. These came from Robert Spikenard himself through the four serious diviners, Berthold, Anghel Stirnestu, small Briht gan Schenik and little Vao gan Redo, now all Marauders, and taking into account the smaller but still significant skills, Ria gan Naldo, Polina and Tatiana Balyzama, Kornelia Kirsch, Max Balzar, and Linda Fledermaus. Robert described Linda a "better than she appeared and nowhere near as good as she thought herself," which English sort of idiom had Jade laughing and saying that she knew the type exactly.

"Like Hazel," said Robert, gloomily.

"No real vice to her but at times you wish you could put her head in one," punned Jade.

"Exactly," said Robert. "Linda is an arrogant child whose parents make much of her visions. Her visions, I may say, are often as much imagination as true seeing because she gets glimpses and then I swear she makes up the rest. I've seen it often enough at Hogwarts. A bit Ravenclawish. At least Huffer girls only tell it like it is, or make something up for shits and giggles because they have to write something, and Gryffs scorn to make anything up. They only interpret things boneheadedly," he added, managing a wry smile in telling a joke against himself, having made an ass of himself in interpreting Darryl Zabini's whereabouts once.

"Slythers don't do seers; that's interesting," said Jade.

"Slythers don't permit anything to inconvenience them, and being a seer can be deucedly inconvenient," said Robet. "I'm glad I'm not. I'm good enough and for me that's good enough."

"I'll make a Slyther of you yet, you big Gryff baboon," said Jade. "Having sidetracked you thoroughly, what are you getting?"

"Well, apart from Vao picking up about the evanesco place, we're mostly getting rather nebulous attempts to kidnap," said Robert.

Jade nodded.

"That rather tallies with what other people have got; the kidnap of sundry best beloveds of those contestants they want to force out. They can't force anyone out, of course, putting your name in the goblet is an unbreakable vow. But it could have been nasty. Dad has it all in hand, however, and ways round preventing them doing what they are doing."

Robert nodded.

"I might have guessed he would have," he said. "I must say, I've written to my Grandmother to tell her the way Durmstrang has introduced of pooling divination results; you can say what you like about German efficiency, and I bet Professor Fraser has had a lot to say on the subject, mostly snarky as hell, but it IS efficient."

"And top marks to Durmstrang for coming up with it," said Jade, "and mostly down to your cousin Salvia Pippin."

"And I'm jolly glad she has a good job despite not managing to raise a tea leaf of her own," said Robert. "She's like gran; very sensible."

oOo

It was a shame, thought Biirta, that Wilga gan Heran was not sensible at all, but at least the child was opening up somewhat to her when fagging, and perhaps she was not as blasé as she made out about the fate of other girls. She went on and on about her privileged status, and Biirta was beginning to wonder if there was a glimmer of social conscience that the child was trying to deny. Without being much of a scholar, the child was by no means stupid, and had to see that there was no difference between the performances in general of human, goblin or half goblins. Her racial prejudices were parroted directly from her father, and his prejudices appeared to be pure casuistry to permit him to exploit as he saw fit. And she had suffered somewhat from her classmate Kornelia Kirsch talking about her adopted sisters Emese and Elfriede and how they had been rescued from being slaves of Wilga's father, and how they were so much cleverer than Wilga could ever be. As classmates Darna and Hilder, also Marauders, and Erleva, siblings of Safraxa and Ervig, also had new siblings from the same source, Wilga was even less popular than usual. Erleva was not sure how to feel about a new sibling, taking the place of those who had not survived to adulthood, but then, she had no illusions over how she would feel if she were in the situation of her new sister Mechta, and offered a home. Erleva was determined to try not to feel too jealous. Darna was just a generous little soul who would have happily welcomed a dozen spare sisters if needed, and her twin took life as he found it.

Having the Marauders in her class discussing whether they could manage an amusing sending to let Heran know how much they despised people like him was bringing it home to Wilga that pure-blood humans, people on whom she fawned, as much as low born goblin miners disapproved. Especially when Anghel declared that he knew what they had been through because there were evil people everywhere who were child-spoilers.

Jade knew that Mechta woud do anything for her family; Sabac's wife had timidly sent an owl to the school asking if anything could be done about the girl's terrible burns, and Jade had gone immediately to Kobboldsheim. Mechta had tried to hide where one of the clients had enjoyed wand-burning her in sundry places, and Jade had healed every last burn; as soon as she had set up a ritual of summoning of the wand that had performed it. It had required a concerted chant and the power of all the blooded in the school, and once acquired she then had a ritual link to the wizard who had performed the torture on a little girl of just thirteen. He was not going to be enjoying anything sexual ever again, since every time he became aroused, his more intimate members were going to feel as though they were being wand-burned. Jade was of the eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth school of punishment where harming children was concerned.

Gundi, the other child, was a quiet child who was eager to please. It seemed unlikely that she would ever Maraud, but at least she could now grow up and have a few years of the childhood stolen from her. She was much cowed, having been treated as a slave by her own family after her mother had been raped by a human, and had been sold by her brother as soon as he considered her old enough. She was not, indeed, any older than Wilga, which Darna and Hilder were quick to point out when they found this out.

Wilga complained to Biirta about being picked on, and Biirta found that she had been subjected to nothing worse than harsh language, since the First Eagle Marauders seemed always to be around to stop anything going any further. Biirta shrugged.

"You tell me that it's quite all right for those who are born low and despicable to be treated as less than the rest of society; you can hardly complain when the rest of society find that your father and your beliefs mark you as low and despicable."

Wilga actually cried; and Biirta managed to give her a cuddle without feeling too much of a hypocrite. She was only a little girl after all, who had rather lost her way. Or rather, one who had been put on the wrong road by her swine of a father.

"I am rich, and I have everything I want! I can't be despicable!" she howled.

"Wilga, you are a poor child whose father has taught you lies," said Biirta, "and that is why you are despicable in the eyes of the other children, who are too young to understand that you merely parrot the rubbish you have learned. I hope when Gundi comes into your class next year you will stay out of her way, and learn to see that she is a child as you are, and not a proper person to be in a brothel. When you go home for the holidays, I want you to think about the whole business, and how wrong it is; and to try appreciate how other little girls your age and a little older must feel, being forced into sexual relations without a by your leave before they are old enough."

"I don't want to think about it," said Wilga, rebelliously.

"No, I don't suppose you do," said Biirta, dryly.

oOo

"Jade, as a Marauder, don't you think Kristel ought to be blooded in?" asked Kornelia. "Our new sisters feel right to Maraud, and I know Kristel is gentle but she's fierce about what is right. And isn't Friedrich right too?"

"We had wondered about Friedrich, and others, but were afraid your sister might not Maraud," said Jade.

"I'll talk to her," said Kornelia, dancing off to find her sister.

Kristel listened in a mix of wonder and consternation as her little sister outlined Marauding, and the Blood Pact, and how people like Emese and Elfriede needed protectors but were probably strong enough to help with the protecting, and need never be afraid again if they were part of it.

"And … and you say the heads are part of this? And hesitated in case I was unhappy?" said Kristel. "Well, I am not good at divination as you are, but it seems to me to be an omen that if it is needed, it should be embraced. I'll talk to Friedrich."

Jade subsequently summoned Magda, Shizue, Gauda, Gunnar, Ktell, Kole, Kristel and Friedrich to her study, as well as Biirta.

"We discussed inducting you lot into the Marauders earlier this year," she said. "The original members of this class being proven to be exceptional in what you have achieved, and you newer ones being considered the right material. Here's cocoa; I'm about to talk at you."

She proceeded to outline the beginning of Marauding and its aims a little more coherently than Kornelia had done to Kristel, leading Kristel to nod comprehension at some of the points she had missed.

"And you would honour us by asking if we will join this, and be ready to bleed and die for those who fight injustice? We are humbled and ready," said Ktell.

"My brat of a brother is a part of it, isn't he?" asked Gunnar.

"Like my brat of a sister," said Kristel.

"And my brat of a baby sister too," said Friedrich, "because I know she's a Marauder. Lots of things start falling into place."

The three with Marauding siblings grinned at each other.

"What about some of those in the lower sixth?" asked Kole.

"Ervig, Safraxa and Yrse," said Jade. "Not as much hurry for them, but yes, we have considered them. If you are up for it, we'll do the ceremony after the Yule ball; the little ones can sleep a couple of hours before the traditional midnight ceremony."

"Glad you've thought of those in the lower sixth; and I'm certainly up for it," said Kole.

"I – what will Herr Kesselring think?" Magda blushed.

"He was one of my Marauding team at Durmstrang – as was Takeo Namudzu, Shizue, so both approve," said Jade. "It becomes impossible to marry someone outside the group, to love, yes, but to feel the need to bring them in, and share the closeness beyond closeness. But sometimes one has to wait until people are ready. I had to wait a while for my Wulf," said Jade, softly. "A man of honour finds it hard to believe his leaders have no honour. He will tell you the story one day. Ritter waits for you to be ready, Magda; and I have every expectation that you and Takeo will be together one day, too, Shizue, and I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cause a blushing party, Biirta, what are YOU blushing about?"

"Naughty thoughts regarding Lucius," said Biirta, boldly, but blushing as well.

"Oh well, plenty of people have naughty thoughts about Lucius, since he's married to a significant percentage of the female wizarding population," said Jade.

Biirta poked her, to the shock of her fellow sixthformers. Jade laughed and hugged Biirta.

"My dear sister, and nearly aunt-in-law," she said. "At Yule, you who agree will all understand."

"I didn't think any of us were disagreeing," said Gauda, laconically.

"Good: that's settled," said Jade.

oOo

The end of term ball was to be fairly formal as dancing was also a skill taught ruthlessly at school. It would equip those who were good enough at it to have a job teaching dancing, either as a skill in itself to socialites, or to ally with their broad education to permit them to teach as tutors or governesses to those children whose parents were unwilling to expose them to the rigors of Durmstrang. And any who took such jobs would have the support of the school if their charges turned out to be self-willed little monsters who intended treating their teacher as a servant. Formal choice of partners was not, however needed for the Yule ball, and Jade did not inflict it on the school. The fourth and above would attend, as seemed traditional, and how nice it was to see all the children walking tall and confidently, not the cowed rabble many of them had been at first.

Biirta roped in the prefects to decorate the great hall, and her ideas had Jade muttering things about her being born to be a posy Malfoy git, as Biirta turned the great hall into a rather well-known corner of Wiltshire, otherwise called Stonehenge. The illusory sun hung on the solstice marker, and silver frost touched each of the Sarsen stones. Having been there with Lucius, she was able to put on the hidden runes that muggles could not see, which had only ever been partially translated by later Wizards, and which were a pet project for Lucius – when he had time.

The ball went with a swing as all those attending were out for a good time, as they had been taught to have a good time, and without any pressures to worry about who danced with whom. It may be said that there was the odd private necking party, largely Friedrich and Kristel, and some exploratory kisses and gropes between Ervig and Safraxa. Jade sighed a little at that pairing, since both came from the same gene pool, but if they were Blooded before they left school, they would either be drawn closer, in which case there was probably no problem, or they would find their feelings more akin to those of siblings.

Ritter danced decorously once with Magda, and told her that after the ceremony he would draw further from her until it was time for her to leave school, as she would be able to know his feelings. Magda was not sure if she preferred to know his feelings – something she had no understanding of – or to leave the blooding until she had left school; but as Biirta plainly seemed to think it a good idea, she decided to do what was right, and worry about how she felt about being drawn back from later.

And after the ball, all those who were to be brought in were taken to the room set up as a Marauding room, escorted by Biirta, Grelleg and Zaly, as the younger ones filed up quietly. And then on Jade's command they were slitting their palms, and sharing blood, and Magda gasped in how right it felt, and how Ritter would never let her fear again! Friedrich and Kristel began the necking party again in some earnest, and Ulvik absently healed their clasped hands without bothering with word or wand.

"Someone prize our siblings apart, Kornelia and I don't want to be aunts yet," said Florenzia.

Biirta tickled Kristel and Kole poked Friedrich.

And then they were replenishing lost energy with cocoa and apfeltorte, before trailing off to bed, those who were founder members no longer nervous of the future when they came to leave school in what was now so short a time, just half a calendar year away. They would always have support.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

There was to be some limited cover of the combined schools balls at Beauxbatons on Wizarding Wireless Vision, so the first year Marauders of Prince Peak had begged Yrdl and Crow to carry view-o-sneaks and omnioculars to give them a good view of the chair Dolokhov would occupy, and something to help them pinpoint their geomantic calculations. Yrdl was curious to see if they could pull it off, and agreed; there would be a feast before the ball and the visiting heads would presumably sit in the same places they had sat, and would sit for the next task. Seating the heads in such a way that they would neither plot together nor try to kill each other must be an exercise in diplomacy in itself.

"And actually if we can get most of the geomancy beforehand and get a sneak look at the chair, if you go early, we could do it now, not for the next task," said Radagas, smiling as winsomely as he could manage at Yrdl.

"Brats. I'll do my best. Have you pinpointed Beauxbatons?" she asked.

Radagas gave her a seraphic smile.

"Better than that, I picked your pocket and we copied the map for the second task, so we have the school plotted in according to its orientation as well," he said.

"Well I like your cheek!" said Yrdl.

"Dad said I should keep my hand in with picking pockets in case it ever became needed as a Marauding skill," said Radagas.

"Casuistry, but we'll let it pass, as it's Christmas," said Yrdl. "I'll do my best. I'll see if Philomène will give me a hand."

"Thanks, Yrdl, you're the best!" said Radagas.

Severus would have to be involved, but then Severus was happy to facilitate the experiments of the lower school, especially if he did not offially know about them, and could easily be persuaded to find some reason to want an hour in the Beauxbatons library.

"Isn't there a book in French on a study of squibs done while people were hiding out during the revolution?" said Yrdl, innocently to Severus, later. "If we went early, Severus, you might be able to find it."

Severus gave her a suspicious look, then shrugged.

A wise Headmaster knew when not to ask too many questions.

oOo

Radagas, Ambrose, Falk, Ekki, Zenz, Rainer, Vetrik and Jurgo were wildly excited. They had done all their homework on their jape, and designed their chant, both to open up a connection to their jinxing and the jinx itself. Now it was nearly time!

And Yrdl appeared on the view-o-sneak as she fished it out of her pocket, and then pointed it at the chair, and proceeded to use her wand to leave them enough data to triangulate using the corner of the great hall and a massive old tree on the horizon which was geomantically marked on the map.

"Oh nice!" whispered Radagas, who was the group geomancer, with help from Ambrose. Vetrik was banned from helping since the time he had plotted Prince Peak onto a world map at the bottom of Lake Titicaca. Radagas used sketches as well, and added the sketchmap to the centre of their circle of ritual; because it seemed right, and art had to be useful for something. It might make up for any slight movements of furniture.

And then they were chanting, and on the view-o-sneak, the chair briefly glowed blue, which was a good sign that their aim was on target.

The Waffling logic had already been done, and checked by Yrdl, and so the condition that the weight of an adult human who also had horse's hooves was laid in, all of them hoping that Dolokhov would not have managed to be decursed in the meantime. This would activate the jinx which played 'Popcorn' arranged for piano, fart organ and coconut halves, pre-recorded, and displayed the words 'Idiot' and the Russian 'Durak' in glowing letters above the chair with an arrow pointing down to whoever was sitting there.

They gave a sigh of relief when it was complete.

"You know, as the conditions are so specific, we could just have cursed all the chairs in Beauxbatons and saved ourselves a whole heap of geomancy," said Ambrose.

"You Yankee git," said Radagas.

Ambrose bowed.

"I live but to serve," he said.

The brief scuffle that followed this was rapidly broken up as people began arriving at Beauxbatons, and both boys rapidly restored their eyebrows and removed any extraneous spider legs or maggot-popping pustules forthwith.

"The headmaster will rate the geomancy anywise," said Zenz. "When we have that interview with him about it; and he so will appreciate using the greater skill."

"We might as well start writing it up for the Marauder book as soon as we've seen it in action," said Rainer, "because he's going to demand it as an impot, and so long as it gets done, he won't mind if we get it done ahead of time."

As Rainer was the head's grandson, this was considered a good idea; but in the meantime the conspirators sat down with the necessary ritual accompaniment of real popcorn to watch. Having an American in their group made American comestibles a necessary ritual aid; and besides, they had discovered they liked it, once Ambrose had explained the meaning of the name of their chosen music!

oOo

The guests to the all-schools ball arrived a few at a time, the Prince Peak contingent, and perforce therefore the Hellibore's contingent well ahead of the rest, and Olympe Maxime never considering questioning that there be any other motive than that Severus wanted to check a reference in her library.

It may be said that Engelbert Hellibore never paused to question this reason given for departing early either. Severus was a well known bibliophile and academic, and Engelbert merely went to roust the man who had become a friend out of the library when other groups started arriving.

As Severus was deep in a book and making excited notes, this was a necessity.

Severus sighed, made a note of the page, and muttered that as soon as things were under way, Yrdl and Crow would doubtless cover for him so he could slip back.

Hellibore had no doubt that any of Severus Snape's pupils would happily cover for him, and probably lie themselves black in the face for him; and wondered enviously what it would be like to be so adored by one's pupils.

Meanwhile the Durmstrang ship arrived with musical accompaniment.

Eve had dredged up from her memory some of the Gilbert and Sullivan of which Severus was so fond, and suggested that Zyrillis should arrive, under sonorous spell, singing the Pirate King's song, from Pirates of Penzance because it would amuse Professors Snape and Fraser, and would irritate Dolokhov. Accordingly with some research, and aid from the Musical Marauders, the pirate ship emerged through the ornamental lake with Zyrillis, artificially deepened in tone, singing,

"_Oh better for to live and die, under the brave black flag I fly_

_Than play a sanctimonious part, with a pirate head, and a pirate heart._

_Away to the cheating world go you,_

_Where pirates all are well to-do_

_But I'll be true to the song I sing, and live and die a pirate king!" _

"Goodness gracious, what a splendid boy," said Severus. "I wager those imps in the fourth did the pirate flag though."

The Durmstrang ship flew the jolly roger, which bore a distinct resemblance to Iron Maiden's Ed, and which instead of crossed bones had crossed bony arms which gesticulated.

Not all the gesticulations were polite.

David Fraser was indeed killing himself laughing, and his contingent answered the singing, when Zyrillis had finished, with a rendition of 'Modern Hogwarts Potioneer', being a pastiche on a song from the same operetta, but better known to them – and making more sense to young witches and wizards – than the original.

"They're all mad, of course," said Neville, collecting Storm and Zephyra from David to support Riker. "Maybe we should call for 'Black Bear'."

"Well, only if we need a call to arms," said David.

Jade arrived with her group, lauging.

"Tempted as I am to sing 'Poor wandering one' in answer to Zyrillis, really with all these Marauders about we would do better to have Draco and Harry singing 'When a felon's not engaged in his employment'," she said. "Maturing their felonious little plans is what Marauders do best, and is it my imagination or are Dad's lot looking far too smug to be virtuous?"

"Not us, O best beloved," said Yrdl, "But some of our juniors have been maturing their felonious little plans with a will, and their capacity for innocent enjoyment – if you can describe it as that – is just as great as any honest man's."

"I look forward to it," said Jade. "Prince Peak does produce some moderately original felonies."

The schools drifted into the Beauxbatons Great Hall, where places were set for the feast, and where only Aglaia and her court gathered together in one little clique, as the rest of the youths mingled happily with the French youngsters and with each other. They sat down purely to be able to rise for the staff when they came in, and remained standing, in shock and amusement as Dolkhov threw himself down – before Madam Maxime had been seated, it may be said – and promptly set off a cacophony. The cacophony was not entirely intentional as a cacophony, but only Rainer was musical, and his very competent rendition of 'popcorn' on the piano was a trifle adulterated by the fart organs and coconuts.

"Oy, Owlglass, am I seeing things?" said Zyrillis to Xanthe. "Either I'm going insane or Hallow's trying to hide a snigger!"

"She is trying to hide a snigger. Well I'm damned, maybe she is human," said Xanthe.

oOo

The Constitutional Marauders were rolling about on the floor, kicking their heels in sheer glee. It had worked! And HOW it had worked!

"I suppose you lot did that," said Mildred Hubble-Weasley. "Did it actually work as expected? You're awfully clever, if so!"

"Went perfectly as planned!" managed Rainer, before howling with laughter again, as Dolokhov, who had leaped up, sat down again, and set it all going once more.

oOo

Having ascertained that the music went with him sitting down, and having glanced up to see the writing above him, Dolokhov leaped up once more and levelled his wand at Severus.

"You have done this!" he screeched.

"Not I, old boy," said Severus. "If I had it would have been more tuneful in the, er, secondary harmonies. Moderately competent though, do you mind if I come and check how it was done?"

"You know how it was done! AV…." He got no further as a langlock spell dropped on him.

Aglaia Hallow came forward and muttered,

"Do you really want to be arrested, headmaster? I'll get you another chair."

"You are a loyal girl," said Severus. "It's one of your better traits."

Aglaia went red.

"It wasn't altruistic or loyal," she said.

"Then I credit honesty in you," said Severus.

"Who did it?" demanded Aglaia as she returned from seeking another chair. Dolokhov sat down, cautiously. The chair was silent.

oOo

"I suppose it would have been unfair to have them all cursed," said Radagas. "Might have put the other teachers off the feast."

"Still…" said Ambrose.

They contemplated what might have been.

oOo

"I too want to know who did it, and have them punished!" cried Dolokhov.

Severus was examining the chair with some interest, as were David, Jade and Agata.

"I think it's one of your lot, Sev," said David. "It doesn't have the stamp of any of mine, and besides, only you and Durmstrang do ritual seriously."

"I recognise the style of the piano playing," said Jade. "Dad, now I know how you came by all those grey hairs when you first had children at school!"

Severus ran a complacent hand over his thick, black hair.

"A first year? Well, well, how enterprising," he said. "Be sure I will make sure I set a suitable punishment for the enterprising ritualists on my return, Sergei; most ingen – er, inappropriate of them to make game of another school's headmaster like that, but as of course you know, eleven year old little boys – dear me, one of them is only ten – will be eleven year old little boys."

"You're lying! It's beyond the ability of children so young!" howled Dolokhov.

"It is not so!" said Lilith. "I could manage ritual like that on my own when I was ten!"

"And my son and his half-brother were capable of as much at a like age," said Agata Bacso, who had decided it was about time to acknowledge Sigismund.

"It's not as though it was ritual aimed at a person," said Severus. "THAT would be beyond them, though how on earth they managed to enchant in the Waffling logic to take into account a man's weight and horse's hooves… excuse me…" he got out a handkerchief, and the theatrical coughs did not entirely muffle the laughter.

"Oh you and your whole school so will be punished!" said Dolokhov.

"What, even when they will be writing you an apology for torturing you with excruciating music?" said Severus. "They will, you know. To be sent to Wizarding Wireless Vision to be read out. I am afraid I don't actually trust you not to use any actual letters as ritual component to attack very little boys, old boy."

Severus had not needed the light of unholy glee in Dolokhov's eye to second guess THAT possibility!

The feast proceeded with all due dispatch and after a lengthy time to digest, the ball went ahead.

And if Dolokhov thought that his chair was the main topic of conversation and that people kept glancing covertly at him and giggling, he was, much of the time, quite correct. All of Pharamond's efforts at the décor was almost anticlimactic!

He was also outraged that the handsome, pure blood champion of Beauxbatons led a part goblin out onto the dance floor to lead the dancing.

oOo

Zyrillis secured a dance with Aglaia Hallow by the expedient of grabbing her by the hand and pulling her onto the dance floor.

"What's this in aid of, Genauschüren?" asked Aglaia, suspiciously. "You don't like me any more than I like you."

"Just to let you know that if you find you've been making some big mistakes, we might not like you, but you are one of our own, kind of, and we'd stand by you if… well, if a need arose."

"Why should it?" said Aglaia.

"I don't have to be a legilimens to see that you dislike Dolokhov more than you dislike me," said Zyrillis. "And that may not be saying much, but it is saying something."

"And who do you mean, 'we'?" demanded Aglaia.

"The Marauders. I know Wencelada and Axel and I were more supporters than Marauders, but it's all the same thing in the long run. You have some foul ideas, but I don't suppose you thought them up by yourself, and maybe like Cherrytree you're starting to find the logical conclusion of them doesn't sit as well as you thought it might."

"Don't compare me to that provincial little blood taint," said Aglaia.

"Oh there's no comparison; she's ten times more a lady than you are," said Zyrillis, who could only manage tolerant for so long. "But I notice Sev Snape reckons theres's something in you worth talking to, and I rate him highly."

"Well whoop-de-do," sneered Aglaia, and broke off from the dance.

BaHH was nearby and neatly handed his partner – Storm – into Zyrillis' arms to smoothly take Aglaia's hands and continue the dance as though without pause.

"Your footwork is good, Bellamy," said Aglaia.

"Professor Snape reckons footwork is essential for ritual," said BaHH.

"You learn ritual dancing too?" Aglaia was surprised.

"We learn it as a part of chanting, for those people too who can do better with their feet than with their voices," said BaHH. "Our chanting teacher is Lydia Snape-Krumm and she uses dance a lot. Are we managing to be civil to each other? We should be awarded a medal, or doughnuts or something."

"I find the work studied by other traditions interesting," said Aglaia. "Was it truly a bunch of first years who did that sending? It was impressive."

"Judging by what I've been overhearing and deciding to turn a deaf ear to, they've been planning and designing it since the first task," said BaHH. "They WILL forget to keep their voices down in libraries, and you just know small boys – or girls – never inhabit libraries unless with mischief in mind. And none of us like your headmaster so none of us stepped on them to stop them, but watched and waited to see if they could manage it. I'm rather impressed. Don't you have a kid sister about the same age? Is she at the Russian school?"

Aglaia flushed angrily.

"You know fine well she isn't!" she said.

"How am I supposed to know that? She isn't at Durmstrang or Hogwarts, or I'd have heard from one of the kids there. Is she sick, poor kiddie, and needing home schooling?"

Aglaia considered slapping him, but his face was genuinely concerned.

"She's a squib," she snapped.

"Hard lines on her," said BaHH. "I bet she's proud of you being chosen though. You're doing it for her, not Dolokhov, aren't you?"

Aglaia flushed.

"And for myself, to prove that the Hallow family are not all effete," she said.

BaHH laughed.

"Oh I don't think any of us Hallow-Hellibores are effete," he said. "Even diluted by Hellibore blood as we are."

"You don't rate Hellibore?"

"He's my grandfather, and I'm mostly fond of him now. Let's leave it at that," said BaHH. "And there's nothing wrong with my dad; or the Lockhart cousins. Actually the Hallow cousins who did Hellibore's school aren't bad types, and Liriope is the year below me and would jinx me into a ball if I didn't mention that she's moderately efficient. Well, she'd try, which shows she's game," he modified. "I don't really know anything about you and your family, except that there was a big argument which must have been your grandfather and the rest quarrelling."

Aglaia shrugged.

"I have no idea. I only know that the rest of the family is accounted weak by my parents."

"They are incorrect," said BaHH. "But then, if they account pure blood so strong, they have that wrong too, but of course you'll pooh-pooh anything I say; I'm only at the school doing cutting edge research into trying to cure squibs and inbreddism, so being one of the weak branch, who has goblin and muggleborn friends, doubtless you think it won't work and won't let your kid sister be helped if we get the cure."

"I would do anything to cure my sister of being a squib," said Aglaia, in a low, intense voice. "Anything."

"Well, we won't be asking for anything – except a willingness to trust," said BaHH. "And this is why Sev Snape trains in ritual; to sort things like that out. You'd better go back to Pony-boy now the music's stopped; he is glowering."

Aglaia gave a rather angry titter that was half amusement at the designation of Dolokhov as Pony-boy, and went towards him, while BaHH absently summoned a house-elf and asked him to go to Casimir Malfoy's house and borrow a certain vinyl by Bruce Springsteen.

"Who was that and why were you talking so much?" Dolokhov demanded.

"That is my cousin Bellamy Hallow-Hellibore and we had a lot of arguing to do," said Aglaia. "I don't get on with my cousins."

"It looked friendly enough to me," said Dolokhov.

"Oh, you Russians are all so excitable when you argue, do you think we English are the same?" said Aglaia. "If one raises one's voice in an argument, one might as well acknowledge that one has lost it; only peasants and foreigners raise their voices. So tedious of them."

Dolokhov slapped her, hard, and at the sound found that the entire ballroom was gazing at him in shock.

Aglaia hid a little smile, despite the pain. Forcing him to do that was a little victory.

And then the strains of Bruce Springsteen singing 'Pony Boy' wafted across the ballroom.

Aglaia had never felt more in accord with any of her cousins.

oOo

Severus passed amongst the contestants quietly asking them to step to one side and give him a few drops of blood. By a few, he meant twenty-three. He planned to take no chances with regard to protecting the contestants and their best beloveds. Aglaia predictably asked why.

Severus gave her an inscrutable look.

"Because it has come to my notice that there might be trouble caused for any who are not what some people account perfect pure bloods," he said.

"He doesn't know," said Aglaia.

"Nevertheless, my dear, and even if he doesn't know, I plan to protect all the contestants and all their loved ones, and I will have the blood from you even if I have to confund you and obliviate you to do so," said Severus.

"Very well," said Aglaia. "It's no sort of contest if the contestants are fixed from outside anyway, even gobbos and blood-taints."

"An excellent sentiment up to about half way through," said Severus, passing her a silver knife, and holding a vial.

Aglaia counted.

"Lilith Snape wrote a piece about the power of twenty-three," she said.

"It has to do with heritance," said Severus. "Because it's a number that defines humans, goblins and elves by the number of parcels of heritance."

"Are you really trying to cure squibs?"

"Yes. It's research that's been going on for some time, largely performed by Vladimir Malfoy. Prince Peak is drawing his research together. Because it appears to be a curse as elves were cursed."

"What do you mean?" Aglaia demanded.

Severus gave her the long version of the lecture on the fey, because as an academic she would probably appreciate it.

"Some spirit bastard has cursed our elf into looking stupid and speaking stupidly?" she said, in real anger.

"Just so," said Severus. "I'm working towards a universal cure, but many elves have been cursed too long and are afraid of being as they should be."

"Well I shall order her to learn to overcome that!" said Aglaia.

Severus sighed.

It was a start.

"You are going to be in trouble for being away from the ball so long, especially if Dolokhov finds out you have been talking to me," he said.

Aglaia shrugged.

"I've been in trouble before," she said.

Severus smiled gently.

"I know," he said. "however, permit me; a signature spell of our pupils and those of Hogwarts, and one you will need rescuing from, and you can blame your rotten cousin. I am, after all, of his blood too, by a roundabout route."

Aglaia, turned to stone, could not protest it; and when a Beauxbatons couple came upon her, having retired for some serious snogging, they ran shrieking to Madame Maxime, who sent M. Cuiliere for some Mandragora.

"Who did this?" demanded Dolokhov.

Aglaia looked mutinous.

"Bellamy isn't the only blood relative I have here," she muttered. "And I don't want to talk about it."

She had misunderstood the reference to being of Bellamy's blood; but as she believed what she was saying, no lie might be detected, and Severus smiled a thin, satisfied smile.

Eve Cherrytree was one who had learned, and she had written to him that the Marauders of Durmstrang wanted Miss Hallow to be given a chance to find out a few truths, and to get a second chance if she managed it. And Severus gave much credit to Eve for that.

Ultimately the dancing broke up, and the visiting Heads sought out their errant pupils. As Beauxbatons had more nooks and crannies for romantic assignation than any other school, this took a little more doing than might be expected, requiring the discovery of Zajala and Nigel, Wencelada and Axel, a surprised looking Riker and a smug looking Zephyra, and Gerald Kettle and a French girl Hellibore had not caught the name of.

All were roundly cuffed by their respective heads and firmly taken away.

It had been a good dance, enlivened by mischief, and the term was now firmly over for Yule.


End file.
